Priestess of Zo-Kalar
by veraklon
Summary: Her world was doomed. She had even attempted becoming the latest in a line of Dark Lords in order to make people see the truth, but all that ended up happening was that Zee Potter was imprisoned with only the spirits of the dead to keep her company. Realizing this world had no future, she took a chance and decided that the Veil might be her only way into a new world. fem!Harry
1. What To Do

There were only the two of them present; or, at least, that was how it initially seemed. She knew that there were most likely a number of hidden listening devices all over the cell she currently resided in. No way was anyone going to try and talk to her alone. Not with her reputation. Her visitor sat outside of the bars. She knew someone was going to visit; the guards had made sure her arms and legs were properly restrained.

And she'd never talk about the ghosts that watched, as well.

They had been having a discussion for the past hour. It was going nowhere. Nowhere fast. She was telling him the truth, but he refused to listen. They all refused to listen.

"You don't understand. I-I've tried explaining it to you. I've told you again and again and again. You don't listen. Nobody listens." She sighed aloud. "It's why I did what I did. The Goblins, Elves and everything else. They're all Abominations, just like we are. Just to a greater extent. They all have to be destroyed."

"So you've said." He responded dryly at her pause.

"Yes. And I'm right." Her voice rose, frustration coloring her tone. "Everyone thinks I'm insane for seeing the conspiracy that they refuse to believe; discarding the proof that I've shown them over and over again. If we don't stop them, we're doomed. Doomed. We have to get rid of them. Only then might our magic be safe enough to use again."

The rotund visitor stroked his heavy mustache, so similar to Vernon Dursley's that she wondered if they went to the same barber, as he glanced at the file sitting in front of him. "Right. We shouldn't be using magic until it's safe to use."

"That's not what I said."

"You did. Right here, during your third trial. You stated that if we didn't take precautions now, it would be too late soon." He looked up from the page he had been reading from. "When asked to elaborate, you said our own magic was going to destroy us."

"Yes." She wanted to claw her own eyes out. Or maybe his. Yeah. Definitely his. "I said that, but that's not what I was saying, at all. Do you know where magic comes from?"

The man rolled his eyes. "Ah, yes. The gods of old are coming. That was your argument during the first trial. That excuse was thrown out. The old ways do not encourage widespread killing."

"Not Druidism. I'm not even talking about Atlantean. I'm referring to the days of Id. Of the City of Sarnath. Of wh-"

"Poppycock." He interrupted. "Those tales told around campfires. Transcripted ravings of mad men at the turn of the last century, most likely caused from feverish dreams and hallucinations. Smoking too much wacky tabacky or such."

"No. The truth." Zee wanted to pull at her hair, but it would only make her look further insane. "Why won't anyone believe me?"

She watched as he checked the timepiece on his left wrist before closing the file. He gave her a long look. "Ms. Potter, at this point… even if everything you claim turned out to be true, you have been lawfully found guilty of numerous crimes that you must answer for.

"Your first trial led to you being convicted of the murder of one-hundred seventy five members of the Wizarding World. Then, you incited the Goblin Rebellion of 2007, which caused millions of galleons worth of property damage, not to mention the deaths of many good witches and wizards lost in quelling the Rebellion, of which you were convicted during your second trial.

"The third trial was your claim of being a Dark Lord, or Dark Enchantress by your own mouth. That is automatically considered treason. Convicted. That led to trials four through seven which were for the attempted genocide of House Elves, Centaurs, Vampires and Veela respectively. The only reason there were no charges on the Werewolves was due to their lack of human rights throughout Great Britain. Otherwise, convicted on all four counts.

"And, finally, your most recent trial: the theft and willful destruction of various irreplaceable magical tomes, artifacts and grimoires. Family heirlooms and heritages lost; forever. Convicted of nearly eight thousand individual counts."

Zee nodded. "And other than the lives lost trying to stop me from killing the Goblins, I pled guilty to each and every charge. I know. But, if you consider that if you listen to me that everything I was doing was to protect us from Them, then I-"

"No, Ms. Potter." He interrupted her again. "Your gamble of an insanity plea won't work."

"I never claimed to be insane."

"You didn't have to. It was obvious with your proclamations of ancient deities and made up civilizations that you were trying to skirt responsibility. Several prominent Houses… such as Weasley and Black, Malfoy, McMillian and several others petitioned the Courts to not allow you to escape justice through such an obvious ploy."

"I'm the last Heir to the Black Family. How could they…?"

"Scorpius Malfoy was awarded the Title of Lord Black after your third trial. The position is worth only the Seat of the British Wizengamot at this point, the wealth of the Black Family and the Potter Family seized as reparation and then equally divided among the victims of your thievery."

"Of course." She smiled sadly. "Not like money will do me any good in here. Not even any other prisoners to bribe."

"So you could spread your madness? No. You will be left in solitude until they figure out how to finally kill you, once and for all."

"And my being un-killable doesn't add any credence to what I've been saying?"

It was true. Apparently being the Priestess of Zo-Kalar, otherwise known to the Wizarding World as the Mistress of Death and Bearer of the Deathly Hallows, prevented her from dying. They'd attempted to use the Killing Curse after the Second Trial. She'd watched the green spell hit her and then splash against her chest like water. The witnesses had all been slightly unnerved after that happened.

Next, after the Fourth Trial, more conventional methods had been employed. Hanging, firing squad and poison had failed. They tried cutting her head off, but every blade broke against her skin. That's not to say each attempt didn't hurt. Zee was bruised from every hit; gotten sick from poisons. Her skin had burnt like a really awful sunburn from being put to the pyre. But she survived every attempt.

There had been talk of feeding her to a Class Five beast, such as a dragon or a kraken, but those suggestions had been pushed aside when it was realized that such and attempt might give her the opportunity to escape.

And each time, after surviving, Zee had tried to get someone to listen to what she was saying, but each time failed. Claims of the Deathly Hallows giving her evil and unnatural powers as the cause of her possible immortality.

"No. You've used Dark Magic - Black Magic of some kind. Like Voldemort before you. But he was eventually destroyed…"

"By me."

He ignored her interjection. "… and you will be, too. And in the meantime, we will hold you here where we can continue to dig through your mind, learn all of your secrets. Eventually, we will have everything from you, Ms. Potter."

"You're going to die." She morosely offered. "Let me help you. Save you."

Zee looked up at the magistrate, trying to gauge his reaction. It was useless. She could tell by the expression on his face, the way his eyes held no spark. He didn't believe her; no more than anyone else ever had. There was no help for her… not that she had really expected it. The Wizarding World would get rid of her, somehow, and they'd continue on until the end finally came for them, whether by the various Abominations having finally finished their tasks or by enough magic was released to wake one of 'Them' up from their near eternal slumber.

She closed her eyes and leaned back against the smooth stone wall of her cell. The faint buzz of the various wards that made up her small prison almost tickled at this point. The self-proclaimed Dark Enchantress idly wondered if Azkaban's wards had been like these, how the prison could safely hold the wizards and witches against their will – prior to the Dementors taking residence upon the cursed island and feeding off their very life to create complacency. The magic dampening manacles on both of her wrists, as well as both ankles, might have been overkill, but Zee couldn't necessarily blame her captors considering how hard it had been to finally capture her.

Five years now, at her best estimation, that she'd been imprisoned by the International Confederation of Wizards. Five years of constantly being asked the same questions… giving the same answers… being discarded as crazy. Insane. The latest in a long line of English Dark Lords out to exercise their might in subjugating the rest of the world.

It was laughable. Or, it would be if the price of her failure wasn't as dire as it was.

No one would listen, though if Zee could actually be honest with herself for just a moment, she'd understand and sympathize with why the Wizarding World refused to believe her. The very concept was one that had been scrubbed from the history books, deleted from memory, and to get to the root of the conspiracy that surrounded all of them, one did first have to go a little bit mad. Because yes, Zinnia Potter was as mad as a hatter, clinically insane, and had been for near on thirteen years now.

Insanity had been Zee's only option.

What else was there for her to do when she was confronted with the true visage of a Great One? One of the true gods of the universe?

Zee's mind had broken; her psyche not strong enough to grasp the full encompassment of what might have been the truest moment of clarity that there could be.

The Hallows had been a trap. Mistress of Death. So laughable in hindsight. Zinnia Lillian Potter had become the Priestess of Zo-Kalar, one of the few left somewhat awake; not fully dreaming, but not caring about the world around Him. And then she had collected the three vestments of His office, per se, and He decided to wake up a little bit more than He had in several millennia. And with her being His now, He'd let her in on the great cosmic joke of the world: there were horrible, monstrous Gods above Zo-Kalar that were just waiting to wake up just as soon as their servants amassed enough power.

If she couldn't save them, maybe she should just leave.

Escape.

"Just send me though the Veil."

"What?"

Zee opened her eyes to stare through her jail's bars at the man across from her. "At the British Ministry of Magic? The Veil?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You're not from around here, are you?" She took comfort at his ignorance. "Down in the lower floors of the Ministry there are several rooms that contain strange artifacts of power. It was on my list, but I couldn't get to it. There's the Hall of Prophecies, the Suite of Love, the Time Room. There were other doors, but I don't recall much about them. You want the Death Chamber. It holds a Veiled Archway that supposedly kills all who go through it."

"I'm supposed to follow your suggestion on what we're to do with you? This is a trick. You've planned out some type of escape."

'Or," The woman once referred to as The-Girl-Who-Lived shook her head. "I'm tired of being trapped within these four walls. I have nothing to do, no one to talk to. Maybe it's simply time for me to meet my fate."

All lies, of course.

Ever since she'd destroyed the physical forms of the Deathly Hallows, their inherent magic had bonded with her own magical core. No longer did she need to carry a wand, which was convenient since hers had been snapped immediately upon her capture. From the Cloak, invisibility was hers to command… although almost any type of illusion seemed easy enough to conjure. But it was the ring that was the greatest gift slash curse. All of the dead now spoke to her, visited her.

Now, she was never alone.

Currently, there were around twenty ghosts listening to the conversation between the unnamed visitor and Zee, all offering various opinions on what she might say or do… none of them helpful. She'd suffered their comments and accusations for years now. Zee knew how to block them out. The ghosts, at least…

But it wasn't just the spirits and ghosts of the once living that came calling upon her. Now, Zo-Kalar made His presence known all of the time. He loved whispering suggestions to her, offering advice on every little detail that He apparently found amusing. Worse, though, than having an ancient demonic god providing commentary on her life, He took over her reflection in the mirror, which is why she had requested the mirror afforded her in the cell to be removed.

Of course, Zee's reflection appeared to be her. Black hair. Once long, but currently shorn close to her skull. The prison guards kept it short since it could be used as a spell component. Green eyes. No real change there, but they always seemed so sinister looking now. Her normally pale skin now was sickly in color. Five years away from the sun will do that. As for the rest… she felt like she was attractive. Zee had never really gone without an admirer or three during school, and there had never been a lack of bed partners after.

It was her reflection… but it wasn't.

A few months prior to her having to kill Hermione, she'd tried explaining about how Zo-Kalar had stolen her reflection, as well as how the dead now refused to only appear when she called. Zee desperately wanted help from her best friend, but the newly married Mrs. Granger-Thomas had been one of the first to turn on her – to truly question her sanity. Hermione had already been somewhat jealous of Zee's apparent eternal youth and possible immortality due to the Hallows. Being the Chosen of a demonic god was the breaking point of their friendship.

That had led to her being forced to declare herself as a dark lord… or a Dark Enchantress, in her case. Who knew that there was a political necessity in claiming yourself as such? Such a proclamation actually allowed for a legitimacy to your illegal actions in the event that you won. Voldemort's takeover of the Ministry of Magic in England was actually the fifth step in his being declared the winner and the rest of the Wizarding World allowing for his reign to be recognized.

Of course, failure meant you were automatically guilty of treason… which was why Zee had readily admitted her guilt during that trial.

The magistrate stood. "An interesting suggestion. I will look into it. Well, I have another appointment."

Zee watched as the portly fellow left. He didn't wait for an acknowledgement from her or anything… not that anyone ever did. They'd just show up and start questioning her about how she did something or to find out if she was ready to give up her super-secret-all-powerful spell book that she must have had to have been able to achieve all the power to do what she'd done.

Morons. The lot of them all.

Sadly, his leaving seemed to be all the encouragement that the spirits around her deemed necessary, and they all began vying for her attention. Maybe this is how that comedian felt during that movie about seeing the dancer after he died. Didn't she get fed up with them all bothering her, as well?

Ron Weasley's shade apparently was able to beat out the other ghosts to make it in front of her first. "Hey, Zee. He was right jerk, wasn't he?"

"Hi, Ron. Still not mad at me about killing you?"

"Nah, mate. I get that you thought I'd betrayed you by siding with 'Mione about you supposedly being possessed by the Devil. But it still sounds a bit mad, don't you know?"

It was the same conversation with Ghost Ron almost every time. His spirit was apparently locked in a loop due to the way she'd broken into his mind to discover who else from her former friends was intending to come after her. Maybe if she hadn't left her once friend drooling, eyes staring out into nothing, he'd make a better conversationalist.

"I know Ron. Maybe you should go grab your broom. We'll go flying." The smile on Ghost Ron's face was enough to bolster her out of her thoughts of regret for the moment.

"Right-o. I'll be back as soon as Mum turns her back."

It couldn't last though.

Ghost Dumbledore seemed to intimidate the other apparitions around him, they all quickly moved aside as he approached her. It was funny in a very sad way how he looked so much stronger, healthier, as a spirit. They weight of age and responsibilities no longer his burden to bear, See guessed.

"Zinnia." His ghostly gaze still twinkled over the half-moon glasses he wore, even in death. "Why most you continue this pointless crusade? Just accept that it is time to accept what is to be will be. For the Greater Good, my dear."

Did she forget to mention that apparently, after you died, witches and wizards became a part of the greater cause of attempting to wake that which should never be awoken? Yeah… learning the truth meant that now all of the spirit world was constantly against her, pushing her to roll over and accept that there was no longer a reason to fight the good fight.

"Get bent, Old Man." She offered. Zee appreciated that even in the afterlife, she seemed to be able to shock his old time sensibilities. He, thankfully, faded from view with only a sad shake of his head.

"There is no need for such language, Ms. Potter." Ghost Professor McGonagall spoke up from the left side of her cell, ready as always to defend her Albus Dumbledore from any who didn't bow and kiss his arse.

A quick look showed her that the former Transfiguration teacher currently sported the appearance she had just prior to death; meaning that half of her face was a charred ruin from the Reductor Curse Zee had hit the elder woman with during their fight. It really kinda sucked that the ghosts could pick and choose how they appeared when visiting her. Apparently, Minerva was in a petty mood. Ghost Professor Sprout, currently resembling a burnt skeleton, was going on and on about how there had been no need to release Fiendfyre through the halls of the School, causing the deaths of so many wizards and witches that had been hiding at Hogwart's, trying to escape from Zee's rampage… not to mention the children and other innocents that had been caught in the crossfire.

Ignoring those two, as well as the others that had been a part of the teaching staff of Hogwart's, Zee contemplated how long it would be before someone finally came to release her from the manacles and restraints. It was hard to get comfortable when you were chained to the wall with barely the room to move around.

"You know they think you're insane because you're talking to yourself, right?" Ghost Katie Bell broke through Zee's attempt to ignore everyone.

"Yeah?"

Ghost Katie nodded sagely. "They watch you all the time. You know that. And if they're always watching, then they can see you right now talking to an empty space, having a conversation."

"But you're here. Well, at least, your spirit is." Zee rebutted.

"Am I?" Ghost Katie smiled. "Maybe the Deathly Hallows drove you insane and you're actually really only talking to yourself?"

"I know I'm insane. Doesn't that mean I could recognize whether you're really here or not?"

Laughter. From all around. It seemed that all of the spirits were interested in this particular conversation. You'd think that being ghosts that they would offer a bit of privacy to former lovers, but the dead never respected personal space. Never.

Ghost Katie smiled that special smile that I had once thought had been reserved for only me. I knew better now.

"Talking to spirits that only you can see? A demon in the mirror that is your own reflection? Trying to kill all of those innocent magical beings? Calling yourself a Dark Enchantress? And then killing all of your friends? How could they believe anything you'd say?"

"If you had listened to me… believed me, rather than choosing to side against me."

"I had to side with you?" Ghost Katie scoffed. "You sound like Voldemort."

"She does not." Ghost Tom Riddle, like he appeared when Zee had destroyed the Diary Horcrux, was here. Oh, joyful day, her luck just kept on going today.

"You're not welcome here, monster." Ghost Katie snarled.

"That's not for you to decide, girl."

At Ghost Tom's rebuke, Ghost Katie turned to stare at Zee, her eyes pleading. "Why don't you send him away? Tell him he's not wanted here. No one on any plane of existence wants him around. Please, Zee."

The only breathing person in the cell watched as so many of the spirits and ghosts seemed to draw away from Tom's position in the middle of the available space. In fact, many of them vanished altogether. It was a welcome side effect, even though Zee didn't want the visage of the Dark Lord around anymore than the other damned spirits had… but she'd take what she could get. Silver lining, and all.

"What do you want, Tom?"

He smiled that condescending smile that had carried over even when he looked more like the Abomination that he'd tried to become. "I think the Veil was a brilliant play."

"Thanks."

"Will you willingly step through?"

Zee considered the question before answering. "Yeah. I think I will."

"Did you know that we won't be able to follow you? Through the Veil, I mean."

At his words, she perked up. This was something she hadn't considered. "But I'd be dead. Wouldn't I join all of you?"

At the spoken word of joining, the cacophony of otherworldly voices seemed to surround them, inundate them with longing, whispers of new adventures and embracing what was always meant to be, filled Zee's ears and mind. It was overwhelming. Almost.

The spectral version of Tom tilted his head to the side, regarding her. "For one that has gained so much power, has access to so much that was hidden and once lost, you are still a schoolgirl fumbling through a destiny that should have been mine."

"That's rude."

"I don't care." Ghost Tom's appearance morphed into Voldemort from the Graveyard. "That Veil isn't for executions, child. It was for bridging realities. It is the Siege Perilous; a Door on the Beach; the Wardrobe made from Aslan's Tree… and it is your ticket away from this reality."

Ghost Katie apparently didn't like where the conversation was headed. "He lies. Don't listen to him, Zee. You know you can't trust him… even dead."

Ghost Voldemort suddenly had Ghost Katie held by the neck, choking her. The teen's ghostly feet nearly a foot above the cell's dirty floor. If it had been real, Zee would have fought with everything she had to protect her once girlfriend… but they were dead; nothing more than summoned spirits, and it was all just a show.

She watched as he casually flung Ghost Katie away from him. Her former lover vanished through the wall, as ghosts were wont to do. As she waited to see if Ghost Katie was going to return, all of the other spirits left the two of them alone… and considering that Ghost Voldemort was, well, a ghost, that meant she was alone again.

"Now," Ghost Voldemort seemed pleased that he could still terrify someone – anyone. "Embrace the madness, child. Become who you were trying to be." At her apparent look of confusion, the only spirit in the room threw his hands in the air. "You proclaimed yourself a Dark Enchantress. Be THE damnable Dark Enchantress."

"But, I'm trapped in here."

"For the love of Morganna." Ghost Voldemort raged. "Stop whining. The magic and knowledge of Zo-Kalar is within you. He's never going to release you, but by those that you fear, He has protected you where He could. Embrace your darkness. Accept your madness. Be His avatar, whether on this world or another."

A pep talk from a vanquished Dark Lord.

Who would have guessed?

"I need a mirror."

*Make one* Zo-Kalar seemingly whispered in her ear.

She considered His words for a moment, when suddenly Zee could feel her magic flowing through her once again. It was euphoric, the power, denied to her these five long years. With a wave of her hand, a copy of the Mirror of Erised was in front of her. It was the true Mirror. She'd destroyed it during her invasion of Hogwart's, but it an exact copy down to the chips along the edges. The only thing different was that she had not copied the enchantments that the first Mirror of Erised had once held… although the knowledge of how to do that, as well, suddenly filled her head.

Huh?

Zee peered into the reflection. "What do you think?"

Her not-reflection smiled back at her.

"Yeah. That's what I thought, too."

Before the conversation could go further… well, begin really, the sounds of various doors at the end of the corridor leading to her cell were thrown open. Voices, panicking and numerous, caught her attention as wizards and witches (all wearing Hit-Wizard robes and brandishing their wands) took position outside of her jail bars.

"Freeze!" "Stop!" "Don't move!" The voices of her keepers ran over one another, but the message was apparent. They wanted her to stop whatever they thought she was doing.

Standing up slowly, Zee didn't even realize that the suppression manacles that had been restraining her were gone. Not that they'd become unlocked and were on the bench or floor, but gone. Vanished, as if they had never been there in the first place. She held her arms out from her sides, offering them a clear view that she held no weapon. No wand. It was enough that many of the younger magic users facing her relaxed their stances.

The older ones, those with experience, did not relax.

"Zinnia Lillian Potter." A no-nonsense looking witch in the front ordered loudly. "Turn around and face the wall. Keep your movements slow. Do not test me."

Her full name? Wow, but they meant business.

Too bad that she was ready to play. She glanced briefly at her not-reflection and was gratified to see that the not-Zee in the mirror wasn't looking back at her, but Its gaze was trained away from Zee's own and onto the force that was gathered against her. So, Zee was mad… but she wasn't crazy.

She smiled at the Guards, the rush of her magic almost saturating the air of the room with the overpowering scent of ozone. It was the exact smile she had worn at the height of the Wizarding World's fear when she proclaimed herself the Dark Enchantress.

Ghost Voldemort bowed to her before vanishing.

It was time to leave.

"No."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It had been surprisingly quick to reach he destination.

After everything that she had been through in her sorry excuse of a so-called life, through all of the trials and tribulations; after defeating Dark Lord after Dark Lord; from having been hailed as the greatest Bastion of the Light, to have then fallen so far as to be reviled as the Darkest of Dark Ladies, the Dark Enchantress, to declaring war on the magical races… for the end to be here of all places, the rotting corpse of mortar and wood and steel that once housed the British Ministry of Magic. It was almost laughable, if she could have only come up with a better set up for such a pitiful punchline.

Zee Potter… the Dark Enchantress and Mistress of Death, formerly once hailed as the Girl-Who-Lived (that had eventually mutated into the Woman-Who-Won) ignored the moans and cries of pain that seemed to almost echo through the once great walls of the Ministry, those few remaining wizards and witches, maybe once her friends and allies, now her enemies, that had attempted to prevent her from reaching her intended target.

They had even called in Muggle soldiers; NATO or the Allied Forces or some other Muggle nonsense, to bolster their ranks and stop her.

That her crusade with the entirety of the Wizarding World had accomplished what even Voldemort and Grindlewald had never dared to breach through their decades of rebellion and fighting; Zee had broken the Statute of Secrecy and had revealed the Wizarding World to the rest of humanity.

Almost nine years ago now, the Great Reveal or some other such nonsense that it had been named, had spurred the Muggle governments of the world to band together and call for the immediate surrender of the Wizards and Witches across the globe. Needless to say, that had not gone over well with the wand wavers. A silly little self-contained squabble with Dark Enchantress Potter had fallen to the wayside and a call to arms had gone out; the enemy of my enemy is my ally.

Yeah. Not happening.

It had been a valiant effort, magic versus technology. In the end, the Magical and Muggle governments of the world saw the benefit of working together to stop her. Whatever lies the MoM sold to the NoMag's apparently worked… and now Zee was hunted the world over.

After some searching, Zee finally found a working lift to take her further down into the lower levels of the Ministry. It was a vain hope, but one she was willing to chance. She had taken everything that she could get her hands on… those cowardly little Abominations (she refused to call them 'Goblins' any longer) tried to bar her from the bank… they failed, and now she had some gold that might give her a chance in a new world.

The mage-lights flickered in the lift, the entire structure shaking, as the booms of explosions sounded from above her head. Apparently the final shields had broken and the Muggle and magical cavalry had made it to try and stop her. They would fail, as well.

Technology was a tricky opponent. Zee reflected that in small numbers, magic always was superior. One versus one up to versus one hundred, the wand waver always came out on top. Shields and spells, Hexes and Curses… Muggles had no counter. But when the Muggle numbers were over one hundred; when there were thousands versus the one wizard or witch, no matter how primitive the technology versus magic, the wand wasn't enough to pull out another victory.

Now, in certain cases, there were those select witches and wizards that could stand against the great numbers. Susan Longbottom, for instance, could probably have held off an entire platoon of soldiers had they attacked Hogwart's. Alone in front of the ancient castle, the former Hufflepuff could possibly wipe out nearly five thousand soldiers, all on her own, before they might finally wear her down.

Susan had been a worthy opponent.

She still to this day believed it was more likely that the realization that her husband had already fallen under Zee's wand that lead to her eventual defeat. That was the difference between Magic versus Technology and Magic versus Magic.

Luckily for Zee, the hallway no longer spun, making finding the doorway she sought so much easier. It only took looking in six of the eight doors to find what she sought: the Veil.

The chamber housing the cursed archway hadn't changed since that fateful day a lifetime ago, the memory of her godfather vanishing through those ripped curtains, his glance at her both sorrowful and terrified, never failed to make her eyes itch with the threat of tears. Maybe if her plan succeeded she could be reunited with Sirius in whatever place was beyond.

*Is this your plan, Zee?* At the disembodied voice's call, Zee quickly glanced around the massive room for a reflective surface so that she might see Him… well, Him as her.

It had taken months after acquiring all three of the Deathly Hallows before Zee had realized that while her reflection looked like her, moved like her, followed her, it actually wasn't her. Worse than the spelled mirrors throughout the Wizarding World, Zee had what she had incorrectly called Death as her reflection, always there… always offering advice and criticisms and whatever else It wanted to relay to the supposedly new Mistress.

No one knew why Zee suddenly avoided mirrors; why she demanded all reflective surfaces banished from her presence. Rumors had started that she had contracted vampirism or some other form of evil influence. It had been just one of the flimsy accusations that had been thrown at her in those early days before she learned the truth.

She finally found that mirrors sat in each corner of the chamber. Taking a moment, she thought to make her offer again, maybe for the last time. She could dream, right?

"Yes. I'm going through the Veil. You're more than welcome to stay here. I'm sure there's lots of people that would love to meet you and the others."

Zo-Kalar smiled at her using Zee's own smirk. It was disheartening to be on the receiving end of the look Hermione once said should be trademarked. "No. I'll go with you. New adventures and all that, that your Headmaster once promised."

"Leave the Old Goat out of this." Zee snapped. "And be it on your… whatever, when we leave this place."

"Why would I stay?" He mocked back. "At the rate these fools are going, Cthulhu and the others will rise soon. Your friends and allies, loved ones and lovers, enemies and foes? All dead or will wish to be soon enough. Gone and soon to be forgotten. Better we travel to our new Fate together."

Opening her mouth to respond, she was cut off as another voice joined into the conversation.

"If you do this, we won't speak again, Zee." Hermione's voice called from across the vastness of the afterworld. Zee hated how the how the Dead followed her, even here, at the end.

"Good to see you, Mione."

The ghostly apparition nodded sadly. "If you leave, there's no coming back. We can't follow you, no matter how hard you call."

"So Tom said. And that's a bad thing?"

Ghost Hermione Granger-Thomas shrugged. "I'd miss our talks, late into the night."

"You've forgiven me for killing you, then? All's done?"

"I understand so much more now." Hermione kept talking over Zee's attempt at asking. "And no, I can't understand why it took dying to see that you were right, all along. I have to believe that there is a purpose in all things."

"She's right, my love." Ghost Katie Bell's voice added into the conversation. "There is so much you don't understand… that we wish we could tell you."

Looking into her school days lover, Zee idly thought of spring days long passed. "You've forgiven me for letting Tom kick from my cell already?"

"We can be together again."

And with those words, Zee started paying attention to the noises that were steadily getting louder and louder, which meant closer and closer.

"My mind's made up. And I know what you're doing… trying to buy them time to reach me before I can make my escape."

"And is it not what maybe you, yourself, want? Deep down in your heart?"

"Maybe, Headmaster. It might just be that you are right, like always." The once great Albus Dumbledore stood stoically, a rock of strength even these so many years of having been dead. "Is the next great adventure as fun as you'd hoped?"

The spirit of the last true Champion of the Light nodded gracefully. "Join us, Zinnia. The adventure awaits you, as well."

*Not yet.* Zo-Kalar spoke. None of the other apparitions reacted to the mot-reflection. *We will have our own new adventures.*

"You gonna jump or not?" Ghost Pansy Boot spoke up, with Ginny Weasley not far behind. "Don't wuss out now, Potter." "Let's go!"

And with their cries of… support, maybe? A cacophony of voices suddenly filled the Chamber housing the Veil. Spirits seemed to realize that it was their final opportunity to interact with the bearer of the Deathly Hallows power, each crying out words of love or support, accusations of acts of betrayal, murder, and all other sins upon which Zee might be guilty, probably guilty and most definitely guilty of committing.

Hundreds of voices, the shrieks of the dead, now only barely hiding the sharp cracks at the door. The Muggle troops and remaining Hit-Wizards and Aurors had finally caught up to her. She ignored it all, her gaze now only for the Veil… its voices adding to the others, lending to the tsunami of noise that refused to stop, even for a second.

Maybe she was insane and Zo-Kalar wasn't in the mirror. Her attention was pulled from the Veil.

Zee's parents now called out to her; teachers from days long ago; lovers who touched her life but briefly. All sought her out until Zee was forced to call upon the unholy sorcery that now belonged to her… hers to control now that she had accepted that she was the Dark Enchantress.

"Begone."

It was just for that last, fleeting glimpse that she saw her mother crying. They would never meet. Not in this lifetime, nor ever in any other. The price to be paid.

"See? Why would I leave you? Ever?" Zo-Kalar spoke into the chamber's ringing silence.

Turning away from her not-reflection, she gathered the tattered cloak she'd stolen from a fallen Hit-Wizard, pulling it closer around her thin frame. "Then let's be off."

And then, just as the invaders finally caught up to their ultimate quarry, the soldiers and wizards and witches all watched as the Mistress of Death, the Wizarding World's last Dark Enchantress, stepped through the Veil and vanished from this reality forever.

It would be just past three hundred years later that the truth of her cause was realized… and the Earth and its reality fell to the rise of the Ancient Great Ones.

They slept no longer.


	2. Where Am I

There had been a movie that she and Katie had watched during the summer before Zee's sixth year at Hogwart's one date night staying over at the Bell family's home; something about star travel. The good guys had walked into a vertical pool of water and then zoomed through a rollercoaster of twists and turns before their arrival on a distant desert planet. It was all very exciting, but the travel had reminded her of flying a broom through a rainstorm.

Walking through the Veil was an utter disappointment in comparison. One moment in the Chamber of Death and the next on looking out over a dark, rocky landscape as far as her eyes could see.

See continued to look around, checking for differences on where she might actually be. Could this be the afterlife? Maybe she had finally found a way to die?

*You are not dead.*

Ah.

Lightning flashed, purple in color, across the sky. Strange constellations of start twinkled down, lending to the idea that Zee definitely wasn't in Kansas any longer. Gathering her wits about her, the displaced Witch decided to find some measure of protection from the elements. Lightning and the sudden appearance of cool wind leant to the possibility of rain. Maybe a storm. In the distance she spotted what initially appeared to be a cave of sorts. Or maybe just an outcropping of stone that might offer some measure of protection. And luckily it seemed not that far a hike.

But Zinnia was a Witch, wasn't she?

After Apparating successfully; something she felt was safe to attempt - she could see the destination with her own eyes, and it would be an easy sort of practice to test her ability to do magic here... wherever here actually was.

"I'm not insane, right?" Zee sighed as she glanced at the mirror she had Transfigured from one of the countless rocks littering the cave's floor. "I mean, you'd tell me if I was nuts, wouldn't you? We're definitely not on Earth anymore, right?"

Her reflection took a moment to ponder the question, giving it the thought it so deserved. Several times, the raven haired not-woman trapped in the silvery glass started to answer, but seemed to think better of whatever she was going to offer. Finally, after several minutes, the not-reflection spoke softly.

*If I say that you are insane, thereby insinuating that you are, in fact, talking to yourself for these many years, then... well, yes, you are alone here on this desolate planet.*

"Okay." Zee hoped the inflection of her voice indicated that she needed more to her question. Luckily, Zo-Kalar was apparently not finished.

*But if I say that you are perfectly lucid, how does that change anything about what is going on here?*

"Continue."

*Ultimately, you have to accept that you are talking to your reflection. Whether I am a figment of your psychosis, or an actual visual representation of a manifestation of a god you don't want to believe in, of which, you are the Priestess of, how does that change anything? We are here. You, my poor little Witch, alone. Or you and I, though separated by the Laws that govern Celestial Beings interacting with mortals or, in your case, nigh immortal living beings.*

Zee nodded as she turned her gaze towards the horizon. "I hate it here."

*We just got here. Or are you meaning you wish you'd stayed back with your reality? It was going so swimmingly for you there.*

Zee ignored her not-refection's tone. "No. They deserve their fate. They'll all be House Elves by the time their end comes."

Knowledge is power. That's the saying, right? Not long after Zee had mistakenly accepted what she had thought was the mantle of 'Mistress of Death', she had realized that something was exactly right with the Wizarding World and its various denizens. Different magical creatures began actively seeking her out, while others began avoiding her altogether. Where her relationship with House Elves had been fairly benevolent, Zee saw how they all made every effort to avoid her… some even going so far as to ignore requests. Unheard of for a House Elf! On the other side of the galleon, the Goblins made every effort to be accommodating. Those little fuckers were downright nice.

She knew something was up… and trying to depend upon Beedle the Bard and his children's tales just wasn't going to cut it. Zee initially raided the Library at Hogwart's, but unfortunately almost all of the books that even seemed to have a passing idea of what she was looking for was missing. In some cases, the very name of the book had been burned from the page that she was reading. That led her to raiding personal libraries.

Auctions from Death Eater estates and others were suddenly at the top of Zee's list to attend. Thousands of galleons later, she had the beginnings of a clue of what was really going on in the Wizarding World… which was all good, except that the rumors began to circulate that Zinnia Potter was going dark, trying to find dark spells for nefarious purposes. The Daily Prophet even began a Dark Potter Watch where they listed all of the places she frequented and, when possible, started listing the dark and strange items she was purchasing.

It was a lucky find that finally put her onto the right path.

In a trunk full of old tomes from an estate sale in northern Italy, Zee found seven non-sequential pages from an ancient spell book called the Book of Eibon. The pages were torn, as if ripped from the bindings that had held them… and the writing was nearly illegible. It took nearly four different restoration charms, plus two semi-legal potions to finally make out what the pages spoke of.

Three of the pages were parts of different spells. Dark spells. Very, very dark spells. If what Zee could put together from the little bit of Arithmancy she remember from school, the spells in the Book of Eibon made the three Unforgivables look positively benign in comparison. Two pages told of how to properly prepare a human skull for demonic summoning without requiring the blood of a virgin male under the age of thirteen to properly temper the bone. Something about the Emanation of Yoth, whatever that was. Zee was happy that the pages didn't explain how to properly get said blood. One page spoke of something called Hyperborea; sort of a history of its customs.

The last page, however, was what truly put Zee towards the first step into madness. It had been possibly the most horrid of truths that she had learned; House Elves were actually Witches and Wizards that had been captured and 'modified' by the Goblins.

She'd spent several minutes retching in the loo after reading that particular fact. It had taken several quick tumblers of fire whiskey to get her hands to stop shaking long enough for her eyes to focus of the tiny script that filled that final piece of a book that Zee prayed was a joke. A really, really poor joke.

The page had been somewhere in the middle of an argument by the author towards the purpose of said transformation, lending forward the cause of lowering the restrictions of when to force the change upon the unsuspecting witch or wizard. Apparently, there was a need to create free magic that could be given purpose towards something. The text ended prior to getting to whatever end goal there was for such monstrous endeavors. For centuries - millennia, Goblins had been the servants of… something. It was an almost unholy devotion, one that Zee was terrified to truly contemplate. Apparently, when magic users reached a certain level of magical aptitude (though how such was determined was not explained in the page she had), the Goblins took the witch or wizard, no matter how young or old, and turned them into a House Elf.

Zee had sat down and contemplated every interaction she'd ever had with Dobby and Kreacher. How they'd been mistreated and abused for so long, and that they could have been friends or relatives to the very masters that treated them so horribly. Which led her to even worse thoughts…

What had happened to Sally Anne Perks? There had been that sweet girl in her first year at Hogwart's, but she had never come to the second year. Had she fallen into the Goblins' snare? How many others of the Wizarding World had vanished? How many had been mistakenly blamed on Voldemort and his followers? Or Grindlewald? Of the dark lords before him?

Now, with an idea of what she was looking for, Zee had pushed harder than ever to find more of what was truly happening in the world. Using the various words that she had never heard of previously, Zee could use the Charm Hermione had created for searching libraries for key words and phrases. It was only a matter of time before she would locate another reference to Hyperborea or Eidon or even Yoth. It would be nearly a year of searching before she found more of what she was looking for.

In the United States of America, in the small Massachusetts town of Arkham, Zee found a private seller of rare and unusual books that had stumbled upon a collection from a former professor at Miskatonic University. When she had silently cast the Seek-Word Charm, nearly every book in the professor's small library had lit up... as well as several other books that were on the shelves of the small store. Zee had bought everything. The shopkeeper retired that day. And Zee left with every book, every scrap of paper. All of it.

Zee holed herself up in a small cottage she bought on the outskirts of Sheffield and dove into the various books that she now owned. Most of them were diaries, actually. Academic journals and case study notes. She began using the Internet to cross-reference the various dates listed with what the text claimed happened, as opposed to what the general public was told happened.

Viral outbreaks and fires matched up with mass experiments performed on entire towns. Attempts at crossbreeding merpeople with townsfolks in rural hamlets and villages. Nothing was considered too terrifying, too horrific, to attempt. And when Zee began checking various magical publications, matching the dates of magical skirmishes with dark lords to what was listed in the Muggle periodicals… everything lined up. No one really knew the truth because the Goblins made sure that everyone was lying to everyone else; the cover ups prevented the truth from getting out.

But what was scarier than the Goblins being the masterminds behind what Zee was finding, was that they weren't in control. Not at all. Even before the Goblins got involved, other races had been created to force the wizard sand witches into a corner, making them both responsible for protecting the very creatures that were slowly forcing the Wizarding World to release more free magic into the ether. Centaurs and fauns, Veela and vampires. And crossbred abominations that were tasked by their progenitors to force the truth away from anyone that could stand against what was coming.

And what was coming?

The Bible was wrong. God wasn't love. The gods were hateful, vicious monsters beyond description that were bent upon inhabiting the Earth. And humanity? Nothing more than an insignificant, momentary pest that was to be swatted away. Less than insects. Less than nothing.

And in the meantime? The various abominations were playing with humans. Using them for sport. And those few of humanity that could access magic? More sporting, but still left to be ignorant of the truth and used as batteries to one day awaken the gods of old. Beings of such immense size and power and awareness that anything lesser would be driven mad at anything more than just the thought of what they truly represented.

But Zee was the Chosen One, right? It was her destiny to bring together the Deathly Hallows and defeat the greatest Dark Lord to ever live. She was to lead the Wizarding World into a new, glorious future of peace and prosperity.

In a fit of hubris, Zinnia Potter wrapped herself up into her father's Cloak, carefully held the Wand of Destiny and called upon the Ring of Resurrection to call Death to her. She was going to lead the charge against the Goblins and other abominations across the world. Zee would not be dissuaded from her righteous cause… and then her world went sideways.

Mistress of Death.

What a joke.

When Zee had gathered the three Hallows together and accepted the title of Mistress of Death, she'd allowed one of the very nightmares she wanted to fight against in. Zee had become the very doorway that she was trying to prevent. No wonder the Goblins were now bending over backwards to serve her. They didn't care about her, but rather the Great One she was now the unwilling slave to. She had lost the war before even knowing it was happening.

But she wasn't going down without a fight. Zee destroyed all the Hallows.

She was free.

Yeah. That would be a great big no.

For the first time, Zo-Kalar made His presence known. He was always there, awake or asleep. Drunk or sober. It didn't matter. She was His now. For weeks, she tried everything to get rid of the monster that had invaded her very brain, her soul. Nothing seemed to work… and then Zee decided to test the boundaries of stupidity a second time.

In a fit of rage, the cause of which she can't even remember, Zee demanded that Zo-Kalar reveal Himself, to prove that He wasn't some inner turmoil that she hadn't created herself. That He wasn't an attack by more mundane sources. And Zo-Kalar appeared to her in the mirror, her not-reflection morphing into His true cosmic visage… and Zee's mind broke completely.

The next day, after weeping all night, Zee decided to destroy the Wizarding World. If she could save even one innocent from the possible yet inevitable fate of becoming a minion to one such as Zo-Kalar, then she would do whatever it took.

Zee's first act was to call as many House Elves to her as she could name. And with each that appeared, she demanded that they go and bring more House Elves to her. Within the hour, hundreds of the former witches and wizards were gathered in the back yard of her cottage. She smiled sadly at them, wondering who they all once were… if she had known them in that previous life, before she ordered them all to not resist or attempt to protect themselves in any way. The signs of relief Zee thought she glimpsed in their eyes was enough to strengthen her resolve as she murdered every House Elf that had answered her call.

Her crusade had begun.

It was too bad that she had failed so spectacularly.

Zee sighed aloud as she pulled the stolen cloak further around her shoulders. Maybe she should start a fire.

"Why did your kind create the abominations?" She asked into the darkness that had crept in all around them, Zinnia and her mirror. "Shouldn't gods be able to do their own dirty work?"

*And do you personally do tasks that others can do for you?*

"I don't need servants."

Her not-reflection laughed. *When you fought Riddle, did you not let others handle the distractions? Those that weren't worth your effort, did you not assign others to deal with the pests? Those that were inconsequential? *

"Well… yeah."

*Same principle here. Why should I concern myself with what I can have others do?*

"And me trying to stop the Others from rising? From waking up?"

Her not-reflection looked Zee over, those green eyes boring into her very being. *If you could have succeeded, no matter how remote a chance, then I would have been the ruler of a world of my own… being the lone god awake while everyone else slept? Why would I not want that?*

"But…"

*Yes, I know.* Zo-Kalar interrupted her. *Your chance of success was laughably pathetic. But the games of gods, they are above what you might understand. Even insane, talking to your own reflection in a mirror you supposedly created with magic… in a desert at the bottom of a mountain you don't recognize under constellations that you cannot identify. You simply don't have the mental capacity to even begin to comprehend what the universe is really like.*

Zee huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine. Let the poor, moronic mortal just sit here while you make plans."

*Now you're getting it.* Her not-reflection sighed. *In the most basic of terms… the universe belonged to beings for greater than you. After hundreds of thousands of centuries, they grew tired and slept. Some on your Earth. Others on other planets. Some even in other galaxies and universes. Maybe even different realities. Some chose to go backwards in time. A few chose to go forward.

*Eventually, lower lifeforms evolved around our sleeping forms. Those that showed some minute shred of intelligence chose to worship us, even as we slept. As we dreamt, those that drew close began to exhibit different branches of evolution; the abominations as you call them. They tapped into the out edges of our dreams and eventually discovered how to help wake us up.*

Zee rolled her eyes. "And why would anyone do that?"

Her not-reflection glared back at her. *Why does anyone do anything? They wanted power. They wanted to rule over those different from them. They wanted to win. The Goblins weren't on the same side as the centaurs. And the Veela definitely hated having to interact with Vampires. Everyone was trying to amass as much free magic to feed their focus of worship before another side could do the same.*

"And what about you? How are you awake without needing the free magic?"

*I have you.* The Great One said simply. *There is a hierarchy, for lack of a better explanation. Not all gods are created equal. I needed a lot less to wake up, and once you gathered the vestments of my Temple, it was the perfect match.*

"How did that happen? How did the Deathly Hallows become a tale told to magical children? Why were they forgotten?"

*No idea. They were each created so long ago. I don't even really remember having much in the way of actively participating in their creation. I think a Priest of my Temple had them created, though remember that I was sleeping at the time.*

After all of these years, trapped under Zo-Kalar's control, there was still so much she didn't understand. But worse was the idea that everything she was learning was ultimately useless. No one in the Wizarding World had believed her, no matter what type of proof Zee attempted to convince them with. It was always discarded.

The Wizarding World deserved whatever fate befell them.

*Someone approaches.*

At her not-refection's words, Zee pulled away from her inner musings and glanced around. From higher up the mountain, she watched as cloaked figure drew closer. The stranger's gait was sure, even though the path he took seemed not the safest – not even considering the high winds and lightning that continued to buffet all around. The figure slowly approached – a staff in his hands aiding in his traversing down the mountainside.

Zee twisted around, her natural inclination to take a dueling stance; her hands already drawing energy from the surrounding area. As the figure continued to approach, she could begin to make out that the figure carried a staff to help him navigate through the darkness. Choosing to show that she was not going to be easy prey, Zee windlessly cast a Glow Light Charm, quickly illuminating the area surrounding where Zee and her mirror stood.

The change from one moment darkness and the next brightly lit, the approaching stranger halted its approach. Seemingly unprepared for her, it threw back the hood of its robe… a dark brown in color, Zee could now discern under the sickly white glow of her Charm. But it was what she faced now that had her tensioning up and readying some of the more deadly spells in her repertoire.

He… Zee decided in that moment that the figure was male… appeared to be some type of serpent man hybrid, sort of like Voldemort had appeared after his resurrection, although the person before her was green and scaled.

Unsure of what she should do, Zee increased the light's luminescence. "Hello?"

*Hello? That's your start? Hello?* Zo-Kalar whispered. Upon finally being able to look upon the approaching humanoid's features, He was sounding agitated. *It's a Velusian. One of the Followers of Yig – one of the Great Old Ones. It needs to be destroyed. Now!*

"Now?" Zee asked aloud.

The snake man in front of her jerked at her words, suddenly pulling the staff in front of him. He began hissing and screeching at her. Loudly, his staff waving back and forth. Maybe it was a trick of the light, or perhaps there had been something special about the opponent before her, but suddenly Zee felt that her life was in danger; that the staff he held was glowing dangerously. Whatever it might or might not have been, the Dark Enchantress flung a Bludgeoning Hex towards the figure opposite her.

Her aim was true. The serpent-like man's staff shattered as the spell continued on and struck the figure in the chest. The fight was over before it really had a chance to begin. He was breathing, that much she could tell from where she stood, but it was labored – he wasn't long for this life.

Slowly, she approached the possible Velusian, whatever that might be. As Zee drew closer to the prone figure on the ground, she realized that his wheezing was a type of laughter. Why was he laughing?

*Careful.*

"I am. I know."

Suddenly, Zee felt her mind being assaulted beyond anything Voldemort or Snape had ever tried. Even at her weakest, she had never experienced the sensations that rushed through her head; waves and waves of soundless noise had Zee wishing for anything to make the excruciating pain stop, even just for a moment. She could hear Zo-Kalar screaming out to her… whatever was happening was even preventing their link from offering aid. It was enough that she was ready to pray for oblivion… and then…

It stopped.

Blessed silence.

*You are definitely screwed.*

The body on the ground was dead. Zee had killed an innocent creature, though what being that had truly ever lived was actually or truly innocent? But that was irrelevant. The serpent man had been a guardian. The keeper of a great secret, possibly one of this reality's greatest secrets… and now it was the duty of Zinnia Potter to take up the required position as a Stone Keeper.

Her mind was suddenly flushed with knowledge. Information about where she currently was (the planet Vormir); and what the year was (3577th day of the third moon's rise); and that the stone… the gem she was guarding could only be obtained by sacrificing your greatest love (who writes these things?); as well as her predecessor had been trapped at being a stone keeper for nearly one hundred days.

Well, that sucked.

Zee looked back over her shoulder at the mirror. Her not-reflection nodded. *Far be it from me to say anything negative about you killing, Zinnia, but maybe you should have waited long enough to maybe determine the actual threat level of your surroundings prior to murdering the Stone Keeper.*

"You told me to." She screamed.

*And you listen to me why?*

The once Dark Enchantress of Britain threw her hands up above her head. "Fuck you. I know I screwed up! But who expected a lizard man with a staff to face off against me after having just walked through the Veil? I mean, I thought we were in Hell or someplace equally as bad."

*And is Vormir all that you expected Hell to be like?* her not- reflection snarked back at her. It sucked to realize that everything she now knew, Zo-Kalar now knew, as well.

She decidedly turned her back on the mirror.

Who really could have expected that crossing realities, possibly dimensions, would include traveling to another planet in another galaxy? Boldly going where no witch had gone before?

But here she was.

How was she supposed to have known that the Veil of her world's section of something called a multiverse would deposit them (her AND Zo-Kalar, of course) to this sad excuse of a reality at some crazy mountaintop on a planet nobody ever apparently visited very often that held some wickedly stupid secret treasure hidden so long ago that nobody ever came looking for it, that required a caretaker to watch over it, and said caretaker was unwillingly drafted until either aforementioned super-secret treasure was claimed or until a new unlucky sucker could be forced to stand guard, thereby allowing the escape of duty from the said previous Stone Keeper?

Whew!

It was crazy.

Not her this time, but the situation. A crazy situation.

But maybe Zee was actually crazy, too. She'd work on that later…

So, Zee had stepped out of whatever time slash space vortex the Veil had created to be immediately confronted with a giant lizard man... well, giant compared to her five foot four height, but she faced a red (had she mentioned that he was red?) lizard jabbering away in hisses and snarls and shaking a staff at her... an act of aggression in her world. Her opponent hadn't stood a chance... but at least she had further proof that her magic worked in whatever warped reality she was in now. Mister Scaly had laid there, dying, and instead of offering Zee condemnation for killing him, he had laughed, gasping between each breath. Zee had stood there, watching as the reptilian creature's mirth led him to his death... and upon his passing, and she felt the knowledge of being a Stone Keeper transfer into her.

That really, really sucked.

Hopefully somebody would come by soon.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"How long have we been here?"

Zee glanced back over to her not-reflection in the mirror – her only companion for so, so very long, awaiting an answer. Zo-Kalar seemed to be mentally calculating. Zee really hoped that she wasn't insane, but knew that it was most likely possible that she was.

*I can't really say as to how long the days are, Zinnia. The rotation of the planet versus the time around its sun, plus the pull due to multiple moons that we've witnessed.* the not-reflection in the mirror sighed. *At best guess, child, I'd say approximately forty years or so, give or take a decade.*

The once Bearer of the Deathly Hallows stretched her arms wide. "And yet I still don't look a day over twenty."

Zo-Kalar looked over at her. And for a moment, Zee could almost believe it was her own reflection finally looking back. Almost.

*Seventeen… if you're lucky.*

How sad was it that she was enjoying the back and forth banter with her reflection which might or might not have been either a manifestation of her own insanity or possibly the demonic god, Zo-Kalar… and what was worse, was that she wasn't sure which would be the worse fate. Should she appreciate that she was once feared across a planet Earth as the Dark Enchantress; that it had taken the combined efforts of the ICW and NATO's armed forced to eventually capture her… and even then, that they'd used the Imperius Curse on the girl she'd been sleeping with to drug her food, so that they could take her while unconscious?

So, for forty years or so, Zee had spent her time roughing it on a mountain that either the god, Zo-Kalar, or her insane psychosis has decided was holding a piece of an Outer God… potentially one the first to ever exist. How a stone could entrap an Outer God, she had no idea; and neither did her not-reflection.

Instead of worrying about those things she couldn't control, Zee spent her useless and apparently days carving the pages of the various books and tomes that she had been able to read of her collection into the walls and floor of the cave she'd turned into her home on this useless planet. The Necronomicon. The Book of Eidon. Over half of the Sepher Ha-Razim. Even the Picatrix and The Grand Grimoire writings had been carved into the stone.

It was ultimately a mindless task, but one that gave Zee the time necessary to sort through all of Hsssefid's memories. That had been the snake guy's name: Hsssefid.

From what she could ascertain, they must be way far away from Earth. He'd had no knowledge of any planet that came close to her home's description. There were, however, multiple worlds that were home to various alien races that looked human, so even if there wasn't an Earth to go home to, there might be a new world or two that she could claim as her own.

Now, if she could just find a wat to get away from Zo-Kalar.

*I explained it to you, Zinnia. You are mine. If I was to leave you now, you'd fade to dust. Your name erased from the ledgers of history. For all intents and purposes, you would have nothing. The quicker you accept that together we can do so much… you are, for all intents and purposes, immortal now. Think of all that we could achieve…*

"What about your body back home?" She questioned her not-reflection. If I became dust, what would you do?"

*I am a Great One, Zinnia. I will go on.*

"Even here?"

Her not-reflection turned to look back at the reflected landscape behind her. *Even in this reality, wherever and whatever it is, I know that you are as you were before. Maybe the laws of magic are new here. Different. But, Zinnia… and you are mine. Death will have no hold over you as long as we are together. There may be gods and goddesses here. Avatars and personifications… but that you are of me now, together becoming who you are. We are. Forever. None will stand against us and survive.*

"So, what you're saying is that I could be stuck on this planet for all eternity?" Zee asked.

*Unless the chance to escape comes? Yes, my Priestess.*

"Great."

*Or…* her not-reflection added. *We could take that portal that just opened up behind you and make our escape.*

"What?" See stood abruptly. Turning to glance behind her, she watched as a tunnel made of swirling light and sound had formed at the base of the mountain. Without considering the ramifications of such an event – the chance that she could finally be away from this accursed planet enough of a reason to spur her to wasting not a moment in her attempt to reach the portal before it might vanish… as would any possibility of getting away.

Drawing nearer, a humanoid figure had suddenly appeared, much like Apparition, in front of the swirling vortex.

"What is this?!" A distinctly German accented speaking voice reached her ears. "Where am I? Where is Captain Rogers?"

Zee didn't care much what the strange figure was saying except that it was definitely human (a bit...? Oh, who was she kidding? A really strange looking male. His face was skull like and blood red!), and German most likely meant Earth. And, well, if not Earth, the open portal behind the strange looking skull headed guy was at least somewhere away from here.

"Can we hold the portal open?"

"Where is the Tesseract?" The skull headed guy was looking all around in apparent confusion. Zee would be more than happy to offer him the knowledge of the planet in exchange for a ride on his magic doorway thing (that sounded a lot less dirty before she took the time to think about that).

"Hi." She offered. The crimson headed skull…. Damn, but he reminded her a bit of Voldemort, what with the lack of a nose and the demanding tone upon his sudden arrival to her home for the past four decades or so. Why did everyone now remind her of Tom? "Your job now, wanker-face."

She was so close to the portal.

*We can keep it open for a few minutes. Maybe longer. But I think only one person can travel at a time. Make sure that it's you and not him.*

"Got it."

"Answer me, fraulein." The German guy demanded. "Where am I? And where is Captain Rogers?"

She spoke German, but it was an ugly language. English by birth, she'd see if he at least could understand a different language of Earth. And besides… he was wearing a Nazi Germany uniform. No way was that something she expected.

"I don't know any Captain Rogers." Zee offered as she tried to maneuver around him. Damn, but he was tall. "As for where you are? Welcome to Vormir."

"What is Vormir? And where is the Tesseract?"

"Look… Mr. Skull Head or whoever you are. I don't know what a toss-a-rap is or why you need it so badly. But Vormir is a planet for away from Earth, of which I'm hoping you are from."

"Yes. Earth." He answered. "And I am Johann Schmidt, leader of HYDRA. And, if my plan goes through then I have won the War. The United States will be in a state of ruin. All will know that the Red Skull was victorious over Captain America and the Allied Forces."

Red Skull? Guy with a face like a crimson skeleton honestly called himself the Red Skull? She definitely needed to leave this world quickly. She couldn't even begin to contemplate how much worse eternity might be with him to talk to. It was definitely time to go; exit, stage left.

"How about a little trade? The German soldier glanced at Zee, his eyes open in question. It was all that she needed to make her move. Using Legilimency hard and dirty, she mind raped the self-named Red Skull of as much as she could handle.

Earth was nearing the end of World War Two. March of 1945. He and this Captain Rogers slash America were the result of scientific experimentation to create super soldiers. And while Rogers was all about freedom and the good fight, Schmidt's HYDRA Organization was exactly the type of 'already set up' group of minions and lackeys that a Dark Empress was in the market for.

Magic seemed a foreign concept. Religious paraphernalia and the like being all that she might have to deal with. Street level occult barely outside of the witch doctors and voodoo practitioners that never even made it to the Wizarding World. This Tesseract that Schmidt was raving about, however, might be something worth looking into. As she neared finishing, Zee knew that she needed to find Armin Zola. He would be key for her eventual takeover of HYDRA.

"Wh-what? What have you done?" Schmidt was kneeling on the ground, both hands holding his head at the temples.

"Just getting started, mein fuhrer." Taking a deep breath, Zee pushed all that Hsssefid had given to her, she pushed in Schmidt's head. It was only fair that he should get the pleasure of becoming the next Stone Keeper, allowing for Zee to finally escape. He was a military man. He should understand the requirement and duty of a sentry. He was perfect.

*You really believe that?*

The Red Skull was currently laying in the ground, drool spilling onto the harsh, unforgiving landscape that surrounded the mountain that held the gateway to the magical stone or whatever. Zee had never seen it, not that she had wanted anything to do with it. The whole mountain stank of demonic energy, what Zo-Kalar referred to as Outer God taint. Whatever it was, she wanted nothing to do with it, at all or ever.

*The portal is fighting back. We need to go.*

Since Schmidt had no objection… his lack of attention (or consciousness for that matter) to her movements as the gift that it was, Zee took the tattered cloak that she had been wearing, throwing it over his prone form and covering that ugly red head of his. She summoned the few belongings that she had painstakingly Transfigured over the long, lonely years, Zee took only long enough to mentally remove any memory of her as the previous Stone Keeper into the skull-shaped head of the skeleton looking interloper before Zee jumped headfirst into the quickly dwindling portal.

Anywhere was better than here.


	3. Welcome Home Maybe

The trip this time more than made up for her passing through the portal that was the Veil that sent her to Vormir. This time, it was all she could do to not vomit all over herself – the twists and turns were not designed for human use. Not comfortably, anyway.

Where was Sirius?

It was a strange thought to have, this moment of being forced through a flume of elemental insanity that was maybe taking her back to Earth. But her Godfather a=had passed under the Archway, which meant he hadn't died… was he alive? Had he ended up on Vormir and luckily escaped being drafted into the Stone Keeper service? But where would he be now?

And when?

She had apparently fallen backwards in time nearly a century. Did time run the same here? Was she in a new reality? A new universe? Or had the Veil actually only been a way to travel back in time?

And why did his ghost show up when she used the Resurrection Stone?

*Pay attention.* Zo-Kalar spoke up. *I think we're almost to the end of this breach. Be ready.*

"Be ready? Like when you had me kill the serpent man because he frightened you?" Zee sharked back at her unwanted traveling companion. "That worked out so great for me."

Any response that might have been coming was cut off as Zee found herself suddenly no longer spinning through the galaxies. She was on what appeared to be an aircraft of some time, although from the various sections that were either trashed or completely missing, it wasn't long for staying in the air.

Great.

She was going to be in a plane crash. Yet another box she could check off of the various ways her life should have ended. Just under stranded on an alien planet and right above the Killing Curse from an ineffectual Dark Lord.

From what she could tell – which, granted, wasn't a whole hell of a lot since her magical education hadn't dealt with muggle transportation – especially not flying… but Zee figured she was in the cargo hold of the plane; or somewhere not near the pilot in the front. A cursory glance all around helped to determine that there wasn't much of anything worth a second look, so she began slowly and quietly making her way towards where she assumed someone else might be.

She could make out a voice, maybe two, up ahead.

A man had his back to Zee, his hands holding some type of flying slash steering wheel. As she drew nearer for a better vantage, the pilot spoke.

"Th-this is my choice." For a moment, Zee was almost sure that he was speaking to her… that he'd been aware of her arrival, but then he added a name. "Peggy."

"I'm here." The recipient of his declaration responded. A woman's voice crackled over the radio.

Zee silent tried to center herself. Apparating was going to be extremely dangerous… she had no idea where she was, whether the landscape was anything like what she remembered from her own Earth; or maybe this was her Earth, just years before she had been born.

"I'm going to need a raincheck on that dance."

"Alright." The woman – Peggy, apparently – even over the old radio style communication, Zee could tell the woman's heart was breaking. "A week next Saturday. At the Stork Club."

Rolling her eyes, Zee gathered her magic and prepared to teleport as far away from this Lifetime Movie moment. She knew how it was going to end, anyway. With the amount of ambient magic that would be necessary to travel such a distance, the plane's electrical system would be completely blown, as well as the backlash of her leaving would blow the craft immediately to the surface.

"You got it."

"Eight o'clock. On the dot." The woman over the radio ordered. "Don't you dare be late. Understood?"

The pilot, Captain Rogers, she knew from Schmidt's stolen memories. "You know I still don't know how to dance."

"I'll show you how." Zee could almost picture the unknown woman crying. "Just be there. We'll have the band play something slow."

"I'd hate to step on your…"

Zee had listened to enough. Taking a deep breath, she summoned as much magic as she could and Apparated to what she hoped was going to be the fields between the Black Lake and Hogwart's, just outside of any wards that might be there.

She materialized on what should have been the snow covered fields near the Black Lake, or what should have been the Black Lake. Instead, there was a stone bridge over a clearly industrialized area with a small pond that was encroached on all sides by several nice looking homes that clearly had been recently built. Across the way, she did see the remains of what might have once been the foundation stones of a castle, though they were so worn and broken that even a Muggle Repelling Ward would have been hard-pressed to create such a mirage. No, there was no Hogwart's School for Witchcraft and Wizardry here. And, apparently, never had been.

Her expenditure of magic decided that exact moment would be time to take its toll, as pain ripped through her abdomen. Her knees and legs failed her, causing Zee to crash to the hard packed dirt pathway she had arrived on. The last conscious thought that passed through her brain, forcing its way between the shocks of the oncoming migraine, was that at least she hadn't Splinched herself for some poor Muggle to find.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Dreaming was never fun anymore.

Gone were those luscious erotic fantasies of finding exactly how similar Fred ad George Weasley might have been… or the Patil sisters, for that matter. Of hiding under the Invisibility Cloak and playing beneath Luna Lovegood's skirts while the rest of the school were oblivious to what was going taking place in the Great Hall, if only they could know. There had been schoolgirl dreams of Cedric Diggory taking her to the school dance, not to mention what it might have taken to break Draco Malfoy. All, wonderfully sinful dreams.

Now, there were only passing fancies of guilt. Of recrimination. The faces of those that had died under her wand. By her own hand. Zee wondered if she should feel bad for her arrival on this Earth. Ignoring that she had made it back home (could she really call it home, considering that it might not have been her reality and almost nothing was as she remembered it? Not to mention that she had arrived nearly fifty or so years earlier into the past than when she'd left her version of the universe. Hell, by calculating the time Zo-Kalar considered their stay on Vormir, she'd travelled an entire century earlier.), her arrival had been to appear on a strange airship that was obviously in the midst of crashing. And Captain "America" Rogers had been about to die.

Should she have offered to save him?

The Girl-Who-Lived? Or the Woman-Who-Won? She'd have damned the consequences and saved the pilot and reunited him with his love. Even during those early days as the Mistress of Death, Zee would have represented her Gryffindor ideals and saved the poor bloke. Not for fame or reward, accolades or anything of the like, but because she was the good guy and that's what good guys did: they saved those that needed saving. But she wasn't good any longer… and hadn't been in a very long time.

No, Zee had taken a few scant moments to catch her bearings before she decided to risk Apparating to a general location that she felt comfortable enough to chance teleporting to: Hogwarts. And she went alone, leaving the doomed craft's pilot to whatever his fate was to have been if she'd not been there.

Schmidt's Captain Rogers. But she'd left him, guilty or not, and there was no turning back time.

Not again, she hoped.

Shaking off any guilt she might should be feeling, Zee decided it was time to awaken. She blinked several times in order to focus and get on with understanding her new reality. She tried to raise her hand to her face in order to wipe away the sleep from her eyes, but was unable to as, when she attempted to move her arm from her side, the handcuff that had her restrained to the medical bed she was currently lounging upon. That certainly dispelled any cobwebs left from her mind. She tilted her head upwards in order to take stock of her current situation.

Zee was covered in a thin blanket, standard hospital issue. She could tell that she was in different clothes than she had been wearing – not much more than Transfigured cloth into basic trousers and robe (maybe they'd finally faded?). The room was standard, if a bit archaic, but as she was in the nineteen forties, there was an obvious answer to why there were no annoying beeps and other mechanical sounds she would have expected in a Muggle hospital.

"Good. You're awake." A voice spoke from behind.

A constable walked around into her line of sight. He was older than his voice indicated, seeming to be near on fifty years or so. Greying hair under the standard cap, with a strong jawline and chin above the standard blue uniform. His mouth was currently not much more than a slight frown, although his eyes were dark and inquisitive.

"Why am I restrained?"

He nodded. "I'm Sargent Locksley. You were found unconscious on the pathway to the Goathland Apothecary. No papers… or really not much of anything on your person, but those rags you were wearing."

Zee shrugged. "I was set upon on the road; barely escaped with my life." She tried to appear scared. "That's no reason to have me bound, as I am."

"True, and I'll apologize for your treatment once I can verify what you're saying, but there's been talk of strangers making trouble along the villages in the area. Several good-hearted folks have been taken in by young lads and lasses who filched their valuables."

Just her luck. "I don't know about any thieving, but my own."

"Aye. You don't seem the type. But I've got some of those families coming down here in the next couple of days to look at you. See if you might have been a part of it."

"But…"

"And it's not like you can just go off on your own right now, lass." He smirked. "You've got no money and nothing to make your way to whatever destination you were on to."

"True." Zee sighed.

"And besides," Sargent Locksley added. "I haven't gotten your name, yet."

"I'm Lupin." Zee lied. "Lily Lupin."

"Lupin, you say?" He inquired as he pulled a page of paper from his coat's inner pocket. "Of the Scarborough Lupins? Old man John Lupin? You're kin to him?"

Was Remus' family from this area? And does that lend more to this being the past of my own Earth?

She smiled softly. "I might, but it's probably distant. I'm from Hertfordshire. I and those I was traveling with… well, I was sent by my Papa to meet with my soon-to-be husband and his family. The Bell's, I'm sure. But I didn't want to marry him, so I ran."

At her story, the constable nodded as if it was what he expected. "All right, Miss Lupin. Seems you've brought a bit of trouble down upon yourself." He pulled an old key from his pocket and released the cuffs from her wrists." I'll need you to stay here for a few days. Let me get the families to look at you and say you're not who I'm looking for.

"Then, I'll contact Old John and get him up here. Mayhap he'll have an idea of what we can do with you. Okay?"

Zee forced herself to start crying. "Oh, thank you. Thank you."

She could tell he was embarrassed by her tears. He took a brief moment to point out some clothes that he had been able to scrounge up for her to wear, before he made a quick exit out of the room. He'd made her promise to not try and leave just yet, and that he'd have food sent to her as soon as possible. It was maddening how long he took, but he finally did leave her alone.

Well, Hogwart's was a bust.

After getting dressed… the clothes were close to fitting. A quick wave of her hand and the clothes fit as if tailored for her exclusively.

Her next Apparition Jump took her to the streets of Leadenhall Market, outside of where the Leaky Cauldron should have stood. Or at least should have. Her memories were of decades later… not the mid nineteen forties. Instead, Zee found an old shop that sold knickknacks, although much of the buildings and streets were in desperate need of repair. Further study revealed that there was no Diagon Alley. No hidden pockets of reality. No Extension Charms to hold any shoppes and the like for the discerning needs of a witch or wizard. No magical traces whatsoever.

There was no Gringotts' Bank. No Goblins.

No immediate discernable indication of any demonic taint.

No abominations.

Deciding to ignore the giddiness that threatened to bubble out of her throat in the form of either giggles or wailing tears, Zee decided to attempt a quick Scrying for any trace of magic in the general area. A quick spell, really, made easier and quicker as the bearer of the three Hallows' magic. She used a hastily Transfigured cup of water (from a puddle) and a quick spit of saliva before the fumes that rose to her nose opened her inner eye to what magics might be about.

The glaring explosion of color from deeper into London proper was enough to almost frighten her. There was definitely some type of magic on this Earth, and it was powerful. It gave off a glow similar to the Ministry of Magic, or maybe even Hogwart's before the end. Wasting no time, Zee started making her way towards the source of the colors that still threatened to overwhelm her. It took some time, the winding streets and daytime traffic to finally make her way to her destination, but it was not as if the time was wasted. She'd come from one war, already. Zee knew how to be prepared. Her magic at the ready and the rags she wore already Transfigured into leather pants, boots and jacket… all hidden behind a Notice-Me-Not Charm.

When she'd finally arrived, her expectations were completely off. Not sure exactly what to expect, the Witch had fallen back into how her Wizarding world would have been set up. Some rundown, broken building that was scheduled for demolition. No trespassing signs everywhere. Instead, what she found was a seriously nice looking building, three levels up, at least, with an ornate window leading into an attic or uppermost floor.

And the glow of magic was even more intense up close.

Zee took a moment to consider her options. Did she just walk up and knock on the door? How does one start such a conversation? Hi, I'm possibly a dimensional traveler; definitely a time traveler, and I've been stuck on an alien planet for the past forty-five or so years and I'm wondering who I need to check in with, please? Or should she go in magic a-blazing and demand to be recognized as the new head-bitch-in-charge and the newest (maybe first, here?) Dark Enchantress and all should bow to her now? She didn't need to look at her not-reflection she know that her not-reflection would absolutely love to support the second option.

*Definitely the second choice. We can take them all out and then we have a base of operations here in the middle of London.*

She chose to ignore the voice in her head, deciding to try the polite way of doing things and introduce herself. As Zee approached the door, her magical awareness started shouting at her that she was being approached from behind. As the hand reached out to grab her, she turned and quickly threw a Body Bind at the figure that had tried to catch her unaware. Now that her possible attacker was immobile, Zee took a moment to look over her newly captured prisoner.

It was a young woman, mid-twenties to early thirties in age. A slight oriental look to her eyes, with light colored hair… but it was the muted sense of magic that caught Zee's interest.

*Not magic. She smells of abomination, but faint. Like a descendent. Not pure.*

"I mean you no harm."

Zee nodded. "Definitely not now. Who are you?"

The woman's eyes darted all around as much as she could, her head unable to turn under the Body Bind. "We must leave here. It's not safe."

"Okay. I'll bite. Why isn't it safe?"

"Sorcery lives in there. Dark magics." The stranger looked over Zee's shoulder towards the house that radiated magical energy. "Any not belonging disappear."

"And if I belong? Maybe I… "

"You don't" The woman interrupted. "We saw you're coming. If you go in there, it's going to lead to very bad things happening. Horrible destruction for all around. Please, trust me."

"I still don't know your name… and why should I trust you?"

"My name is Jiaying. We must go. Now."

Zee glanced over her shoulder to see that there was now some activity in the house. The curtains in the windows were moving, as well as she could sense a slight buildup of magical energies, and almost none of it seemed friendly.

*Decide.*

Taking heed of Zo-Kalar's advice, Zee chose to follow along with her captive. Maybe there was more to this time period and reality than she had been initially led to believe. "Okay. Let's go."

At her word, the Body Bind was released from the stranger – Jiaying, she had said her name was – and instead threw an Invisibility Illusion over the two of them. As Zee allowed herself to be led away from the magical building, she observed how several strangely garbed men and women came out the door and started searching the road and sidewalks, as if looking for something or someone.

*We could have taken them.* Zo-Kalar whispered. *Then the house would be ours and we would still have her as a captive to interrogate.*

Zee couldn't really fault her demonic patron, but she'd learned some hard lessons when facing off against the ICW. No matter how much power she had, if they had enough to overwhelm her… or if even just one got lucky, then it was back to a cell. And she would not be caged again.

"Where are we going?" She asked Jiaying.

"Somewhere safe."

Where had she heard that before?

As they continued away from where they had met, Zee tried to ignore how the other woman's hand felt holding onto her own. She'd been celibate for over half a century if their count was correct. That was way too long to go without the touch of someone other than yourself. And Jiaying was definitely not unattractive.

"I'm Daisy, by the way." No way was she offering her real name. Too many curses were dependent upon true names. "Daisy Black."

The woman… Jiaying, seemed to be about to respond, when the very air around them seemed to fragment, like mirrors upon mirrors, building one upon another until they were completely encased. The world all around them grew quiet. The two of them had been ensnared in some type of fractured reality, only limited within a smaller space.

"We're too late. They've got us."

Zee smiled as various circles of flame, each offering a glimpse of the world beyond, opened and allowed one of the figures from the magical manor they'd been running from enter. She watched as thirteen… wizards, maybe? Thirteen wizards surrounded her and Jiaying. Thirteen was a coven.

Finally, a fairly nice looking, dark skinned man wearing weird clothing even for a potential wizard stepped out from the fourteenth portal. He wore a sash of red as opposed to the yellow of everyone else.

"I sensed your approach, brother." Brother? What? "If you'd like to make yourself known, we would be willing to offer sanctuary for you to stay."

His words rang true. Zee considered the offer before deciding to see how this was going to play out. Maybe there wasn't the need for Jiaying's threat of doom and destruction happening right away. Dropping the Invisibility Illusion, Zee slowly made her way to where the man patiently waited. There was some small thrill as she witnessed his eyes widen at the sight of her. Not brother... and not many had taken her seriously without knowing who she was.

"I am Sol Rama, Master Sorcerer of the Mystic Arts, trained by the Ancient One at Kamar-Taj, Master of the London Sanctum. Be welcome."

Nodding as if she knew what any of that might mean, Zee bowed her head respectfully. "I am Daisy Black, Witch. Thank you for your invitation." At her calling herself a witch, Sol Rama had jerked. It was slight enough that almost anyone else would have missed it, but Zee had been carefully watching for any reaction whatsoever. "Why have you stopped me and my companion from leaving?"

Jiaying was gripping her hand tightly. Zee offered a squeeze back to try and convey that they were going to be all right.

"It has been several decades since a self-proclaimed witch dared announce herself and approach one of the three Sanctums. Not since Morgan Le Fey has one so dared... and the result of such has been the subject of debate ever since." He smiled and his whole face lit up. "I look forward to hearing your tale, young witch."

Zee couldn't help it. She laughed, and not kindly. "Perhaps, Master Sorcerer, but we have elsewhere to be. We should be going now."

"We would prefer to hear your tale now, Miss Black. I must insist that you accompany us back to our Sanctum. You and your," he hesitated for a moment, "companion will be offered every kindness, but I must insist."

As Sol Rama spoke, he gestured with his hand and two of his acolytes opened another portal, this one obviously leading to what appeared to be a nicely furnished inner foyer, early British interior decorating. No way were they going through that magical doorway.

Zee took a deep breath in through her nose. "We are going to have to decline your invitation."

Sol Rama looked disappointed, but not overly surprised at her refusal. "I assure you, there is no other way out of here except for you step into the doorway we have provided. You are trapped. Make it easier on yourself."

"No."

"What brings you, Daisy Black, self-named Witch, to our door? And why do you insist on this pointless rebellion?"

She smiled. "Are you always this arrogant?"

*There is the taint of an Ancient Great One about all of them. They are not avatars… or even abominations… but they reek as did the followers of the old temples. Worshipers that were not much more than fodder and food for those over them.*

The "sorcerer" in front of her sneered. Finally, this air of civility was being stripped away. "You will come with us, witch, as will your friend. You both will answer my questions, and then I will allow The Ancient One to get whatever else she wishes out of you,"

Zee had been ready to dismiss him until he said "Ancient One." Zo-Kalar had immediately flared to attention at those words, offering her a near endless supply of magical energy to draw from. Apparently, these so-called sorcerers weren't completely oblivious to the danger they were in, as they all took fighting stances as the magic raced through her and into Zee's fingertips.

She could almost feel the crackling of magical energies racing along her skin.

"Last chance. Let us go. Now."

He sighed. "I cannot."

"Okay." She was going to enjoy this.

*Hurry, strike hard. Strike first.* the voice in her head spoke clearly but it was the near pleading in Zo-Kalar's voice that finally shook Zee enough to once again her Dark Enchantress persona. She'd kept it at bay, since leaving home. After all, why would there be a need to once again become the most feared Witch to ever walk the Earth?

"Jiaying?" At her name, the woman turned and looked at Zee. Those beautiful eyes were wide with fear. "Stay behind me. Don't run. Don't move. We'll be leaving momentarily."

Zee could see that Jiaying didn't believe her, but that was okay. She'd be a believer in just a few moments.

*Don't bother with those silly Latin phrases. You are my Priestess. You are the dark Enchantress, inheritor of the magic of your world and the last remnants of mine. Don't say it or think it. Do it.*

Not offering any leniency, Zee thrust her arms out wide. No spells. Just her demanding magic to answer to her whims. All fourteen of theses supposed sorcerers were completely caught off guard, as they all were thrown several feet back, none of them left standing. Seeing as she had the element of surprise of her side, Zee allowed threads of lightning to snake through the ground, electrocuting all of the enemies still floundering on the ground.

"Daisy – "

From the tone of Jiaying's voice, she didn't approve of striking once they were down, but Zee knew better. There were no rules, no honor, when potentially fighting for your life; for your freedom. This wasn't a duel. This was a fight… and she fought to win. She allowed the electricity to continue for a few moments more before releasing the energy. From the looks of those that opposed her, most of them were down for the count.

Of the fourteen, only two seemed able to stand. She watched as Sol Rama slowly rose to his feet, his gait unsteady.

"Do you yield?"

He shook his head, as the sorcerer's gaze filled with hate. "I cannot. And though you are powerful, you cannot escape but through that door." Zee followed his finger as he pointed to the portal that they had created. She was not leaving that way. She'd destroy this mirror-world construct first.

Shaking her head, Zee opened her mouth to tell him where he could shove his doorway, when the other sorcerer that she had ignored opened another portal and jumped through it, escaping.

"I should've followed him."

Sol Rama clutched at his left arm as he smiled. "Perhaps. But now it's too late… and reinforcements are on their way."

"You're sure of that?" She taunted.

"He is." A new voice offered from behind her. Damn it, but she should have been paying better attention to her surroundings.

Zee's magical senses immediately recognized the danger of the new arrival. On the surface, she appeared as an older woman. Her style of dress leant towards Asian Monk, including her bald head on top to the woven sandals on her feet. The overall demeanor screamed calm and in control, but Zee could almost see the waves of magic that swirled all around, and the stench of ozone covered her completely.

*She's an avatar. Be very careful. This is the source of the Ancient Great One's taint of corruption I feel nearby.* at her unasked inquiry, Zo-Kalar continued. *And no, I am not sure we can defeat her… not yet. Not now.*

Diplomacy it was, then. "I don't want any more trouble. Just let me and my friend go."

The woman tilted her head to the side, her gaze never leaving Zee, but she spoke to Sol Rama behind her. "Are you okay?"

"I am, Ancient One." He responded.

At his words, this ""Ancient One" took in a deep breath and let it out, as if preparing herself… but for what, Zee could only wonder.

"You must come with us. Now." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "There is no other choice for the both of you except to die; here; now. You've attacked my disciples, injuring them – possibly severely. You must answer for that."

"And the fact that they have held us here against our will? We weren't supposed to defend ourselves?

Instead of answering, the woman across from Zee circled around her and Jiaying until she was next to Sol Rama. The bald woman then turned sideways and spread her legs apart, centering her gravity. She was preparing to fight.

"You're sure this is the best course of action?" Sol Rama spoke as he, too, got into a similar fighting stance. Behind the both of them, Zee watched as a few of the downed sorcerers began to stand and also got ready to fight.

Hadn't they learned their lesson, yet?

"I have consulted every augury I trust. Even a few that I don't." The Ancient One answered loudly – as if she wanted Zee to know the why, as well. "She is dangerous. Very dangerous. In fact, both of them are. Death walks with one; and the other will cause great pain later if she stays free. Together, they have the potential to bring death to every one of us."

After she had finished speaking, Sol Rama twisted his hands and magical energy, visible to the naked eye, formed various runes and symbols in the air. As he continued his motions, the mirrored walls that were all around them closed in. At the same time, the street they were standing upon rose higher until the very buildings that surrounded them became a physical barrier that limited where they could move.

It would have been impressive, but that the fractured mirrors of her surroundings offered her the ability to see that her not-reflection was now around all of them… and none were looking at Zee. It took the two sorcerers a moment to recognize that something was wrong. As Sol Rama nervously looked all around at the various mirrored images of Zee, but finally understanding that each not-reflection was different from the others; all looking like Zee, but that their own gazes were centered either on him or on his master.

"How?" he whispered.

His master – the Ancient One – nodded. "She perverts even our constructs. She must be destroyed."

"Now!" Zee screamed to her legion of not-reflections.

Before her opponents could focus any magical attacks at her or Jiaying, the multiples of her not-reflection flew out from each mirrored fractal and swarmed over the two sorcerers. They couldn't actually do much, as Zee hadn't spared them any of her magic to enhance them further than they currently were, as like ghostly illusions, but that each seemingly had a mind of its own. But they did create the perfect diversion.

"Jiaying." She called out. At her name, the beautiful woman grabbed Zee's outstretched hand.

It wasn't the best way to cement a friendship, but desperate times called for desperate measures. They locked eyes, and that was all of the opening Zee needed to force her way inside of the other woman's mind. Zee tried as best that she could to be gentler than she had been with Schmidt, but time was of the essence. She ignored the strangeness of Jiaying's people, but instead focused on their location. It was not going to be an easy Jump, especially though whatever ward this mirrored world might have, but there was no way they were not escaping.

Zee began immediately pulling as much magic in as she could. Negligently, she watched as the walls around her and Jiaying began to warp and bend. With each mirror now darkening, its corresponding not-reflection faded, too.

"What have you done?" The bald woman asked, her voice barely able to be heard as their prison began to melt away.

"You should be wary of making adversaries of potential allies." Zee offered coldly. "You've made a grave mistake today, thinking that your sorcery was up to my magic. Know that in my world, though not what I sought, I became the Mistress of Death; the Darkest of Dark Ladies; and the Bearer of the Deathly Hallows, to stand against the International Confederation of Wizards. And while I am sure none of that means two wits to you and yours, know that I will destroy all that you hold dear... for I am the Dark Enchantress, and I am your enemy."

"You can't escape, Witch." One of the previously fallen sorcerers behind the Ancient One spat. "You are trapped here without a Sling Ring."

Zee chuckled. "I have no idea what a Sling Ring is, but I'm sure I won't need one."

She couldn't help the laugh that broke free as she watched the various sorcerer's (including the Ancient One) faces drop in surprise as she Jumped from their mirrored prison. Only Zo-Kalar seemed sad to be leaving. If only she'd have considered taking all of their Sling Rings with her. That would have been an epic prank worthy of the Marauders.


	4. Whose Future

She was getting better at Apparating… teleporting… whatever… over greater distances. Zee's magical energy levels didn't seem to react at all to the strain of instantly moving herself and Jiaying across the entirety of Europe and much of Asia to her apparent home base, somewhere in the mountains if the view was anything to go by. It should have been peaceful, tranquil… but all Zee wanted to do was let the rage out.

"Those demon-damned, nerf-herding, arse-munching losers!" She screamed out to no one. "Lousy excuses for magicians. Hypocrites, the lot of them! Outta go back and teach them about real magic! I hope their Merlin-sucking mirror world collapses on top of them!"

Zee wanted to keep going, her tirade nowhere near finished, but seeing Jiaying giggling over to the left, both hands covering her mouth, but her obvious mirth at listening to Zee complain was enough to bring the shouting to a stop.

"What?"

Jiaying just shook her head as she continued to laugh.

"Fine." Zee conceded. "Just stand over there and make fun of my pain."

Finally getting her giggling under control, the other woman shook her head and gestured for Zee to look around. Following direction, the once heralded Savior took in their beautiful surroundings. Jiaying's home was beautiful. It was a fairly crude village; no signs of electricity or running water (if the ditchers and apparent outhouses were any indication), but the vegetation and surrounding trees and mountain tops leant towards an idyllic paradise. The buildings, basic is design, were lined up along a beaten path that served as the center of the little village. From what Zee could see, the pathway led up the mountainside and into the clouds which weren't that far away.

Her potential ally took an apparent calming breath. "How are we here?"

"Isn't this where you wanted us to go?" Zee asked. "Right?"

"Yes. But how? I expected us to be several days travelling by train and ship, lots of walking, to get to know one another. How are we here now?"

Zee thought about what to say. There were so many opportunities… lies and half-truths that could be offered. She took a moment to consider, when she realized that her demonic companion was strangely silent. For once.

"Those people. The ones that tried to capture us."

"The sorcerers." Jiaying offered. Zee nodded.

"I'm sorta like they are." At Jiaying's look, Zee offered what she hoped was a comforting smile. "I'm not with them. I'm… well, I don't know them. And since I am not from around here, they don't like me. I don't think."

"You didn't make a hole in the world like they do."

"No." She sighed. "You get that there is magic in the world, right?"

"Yes." Jiaying offered in response. "Maybe better than you."

Zee let that response go. "Good. Well, I'm a witch. Maybe the only type of witch of my kind."

"And they didn't like that?"

Zee smiled, a real smile this time. "Apparently not."

Jiaying grinned. "Don't worry, Daisy. I'll help protect you."

"Thanks." She answered drily. "But to kinda answer your question, I teleported us here. No open doorway or anything. I just decided I wanted us here and, well, here we are. And speaking of which, where exactly are we?"

"Welcome, Daisy," Jiaying spoke reverently. "To Afterlife."

"Afterlife?"

"Yes. This is the home that I have created for my people."

Zee considered her companion's words. "Your… people?"

Jiaying nodded as she started walking up the pathway. Zee had no choice but to follow. "Long, long ago…"

"In a galaxy far, far away?"

"What?"

Zee sighed. "Never mind. It won't be funny for several decades from now."

Jiaying gave her a confused look before continuing with her story. "As I was saying, long ago, Angels came to us from the heavens. They bore skin of blue and their chariots gleamed like the stars above and brought with them the rumblings of thunder and brimstone. These Angels sought the lucky few that could carry their divine gifts. The Chosen."

"Gifts?"

"Powers." Jiaying stated. "Abilities unlike anything before. They took so many Chosen into the heavens and shared a piece of their own bodies with them, returning with but a few, but those Chosen that came back were changed. Forever. They were Blessed, and the Blessed could now fly; or call forth the water from the seas; break stones with their own hand – using no tool; even able to call fire from nothing. There was no predicting how the gifts would be bestowed. Together, the Angels and the Blessed built temples where we could carefully examine the people, to determine who could survive the process of Terrigenesis."

Zee took a moment to consider what Jiaying was telling her. In many ways. It sounded an awful lot like the Abominations from the Ancient Ones, but she didn't get any of that type of taint from the woman in front of her. Maybe it was different here.

"Terrigenesis? I don't understand."

"The Angels' gifts to humanity came from sharing a tiny bit of their divinity, and that provided the lucky few the powers from the heavens, but after a time, the Angels found a way for the children of the Blessed to inherit their parents' small part of that divinity. Crystals from the heavens that could awaken the children's' divine powers."

"Okay, so how did these crystals work?"

The other woman continued walking, leading Zee to the upper edge of the village. They both ignored the curious faces that seemed to all be watching them. "The crystals caused the Blessed's children to undergo a process of Terrigenesis. They were transformed."

"Okay. With you so far. Angels created the Blessed. Blessed could now use crystals to make more Blessed, right?

"The Blessed grew in number. One of the first of the Blessed by the Angels was given dominion over the rest to lead. To rule. But he realized that the Angels wanted to take the Blessed away; to fight in the wars of Heaven. He chose instead to drive the Angels away. The Blessed rose up against the Angels, breaking their chariots. Those that could eventually fled back to the heavens."

By Merlin's knobby wand! Wasn't this the plot for the move Katie liked?!

"I'm sure that's not the happy ending everyone thought it would be?"

Jiaying stopped in front of a small cottage-like structure, leading them both in through the door. It was nice, clean, but very basic.

"He had driven the Angels away, but he wanted to rule. He kept the crystals for himself, allowing only those that swore to serve him with the opportunity for Terrigenesis. Those few remaining Blessed joined forces with the humans; those both normal as well as those that were more."

"More?"

She nodded. "Some say it was the sorcerers, believing that is why they hunt us even today. Others claim Demons, those that warred in the heavens with the Angels, sought to help. I don't know. But there was an army that challenged him, and won. He was cast to the lands of Death, defeated, but his followers scattered, swearing to find him and bring him back one day."

"Wow. Good story." See tried to lighten the mood. "And that was good, right?"

"If only. Humanity turned on the Blessed and their children. They said we were evil. Monsters. Inhuman. They hunted us, murdered us. The temples were destroyed, the crystals stolen and hidden. A very few of the Blessed escaped, taking what few crystals were left. They hid, creating safe places to live, exist, wherever they could."

Jiaying sat at the table, gesturing for her to join her. "Afterlife is one such community. One for the few remaining refuges left."

After sitting, Zee considered everything that she had been told. So much of the tale had sounded familiar, a blend of the history (both the truth and the lie) of her Wizarding World. Could this have been the reason why the life she'd led in her reality was the way it was?

"Okay. Great recruitment speech." She mentally patted her own back at Jiaying's blush. "I'm in. I may not be a Blessed or an Inhuman or whatever you guys call yourself now, but I can recognize that the cause is just. How can I help?"

*Nice* Zo-Kalar decided to pop up. Of course. *An army of gifted humans. Perfect.*

Yep.

Perfect.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It seemed like only yesterday that Jiaying had been showing her around the village, introducing her to the Elders that helped her run Afterlife, as well as all of the denizens that made this place their home. She ignored Zo-Kalar's running commentary regarding how each new person could fit within the army Zee would create.

She didn't need to consider how the teacher with the ability to create streams of fire would attack from a distance, while his sister offered cover by creating those invisible shields of hers. Or how the village physician could use his malleable body to infiltrate enemy strongholds, and his best friend who could never pass as normal, but possessed such incredible strength and durability would make the ultimate soldier. And there was the little girl who could change shape at will, the perfect spy, or the old blind woman that raised her, that could see glimpses of the future… one of the people that had insisted Jiaying should find Zee… that the old woman could predict enemy movements. How their neighbor whose appearance reminded Zee of Professor Umbridge, but could jump great distances and would make an excellent scout.

So many various powers and abilities. All of the possibilities of how she could so easily blend these Inhumans into the survivors of Schmidt's HYDRA, a perfect partnership of technology and… well, divinity, according to Jiaying. Zee could save this world, this new reality, by breaking those that would try to destroy it before they ever had a chance to do harm. It was the discussion (not an argument) that she and Jiaying had every night before they went to bed they shared.

Jiaying the Undying. That was her gift as a descendant of one of the Blessed. She had lived for centuries already, finding comfort where she could by leading, saving as many of those that could become Inhuman, as was possible. But alone.

Together, they had grown so close so fast. Once Zee (as Daisy) had joined Afterlife and become acquainted with the villagers that made up their tiny community, she had to do something about their living conditions. Zee so loved magic. Homes were expanded upon, as well as magical plumbing, at first, before they could eventually begin putting in actual plumbing in many of the newer homes being built.

Zee had laughed when Jiaying had started dragging her all over Afterlife, creating natural barriers around the cliffs – she'd learned they were somewhere in the mountains of China – and then helping the crops grow even the harsh climate. Together, they turned the rustic little village into a thriving community. Wards were set up, runes carved into the unyielding stone, ensuring that the wards would always remain, even if Zee was no longer there… an impossibility, when Jiaying kissed her like she did, offering to love her even as "Daisy" grew old.

The smile of Jiaying's face when Zee explained how old she was, counting both realities… well, it had been a celebration that neither woman would forget for a very, very long time.

The village was becoming everything that Jiayine had ever dreamed. It was safe. Secure. Hidden. But for Zee, well… the Dark Enchantress hidden within wanted more. How could she not when there were literally a couple of hundred super-powered beings all around her.

Sure, they wouldn't take the woman who seemed only able to make plants grow wherever she walked. Or the young boy that could read and translate any language (Zee had tested that by writing down a few words that came from the Book of Albion that she had never really gotten right. That he had translated it AND explained the context was enough to never speak to him again.). And what would she do with the kid that had a face like a bird? He couldn't fly, he just had a bird face.

But she wanted her army. Even when Zo-Kalar was silent, which was not very often, Zee kept planning how they could wipe out any that opposed them. With the magic stopping today's technology, Afterlife could meet up with the other Inhuman safe havens and together, they'd be unstoppable.

Jiaying refused.

The elders of Afterlife refused.

Even after Zee explained it to them, how humanity and technology were going to start jumping further and further in advances soon. Very soon. About cellular phones and computers; how information would be instantaneous; that hiding in isolation would become their only option, essentially trapping them in Afterlife forever. Zee compared it to being stuck on the moon, with nowhere to go. But they were fine with the little Eden that Zee had helped them create.

It couldn't last…

And Zee couldn't just wait for the inevitable.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Please, Jay." She knew that if the fight was lost again, there would be no reconciliation this time. "I know you've talked your oracles. They've told you about the coming threats. If we strike now, we can prevent it from happening."

"Or be the reason it happens, Daisy."

"I hate prophecies." Zee tried again. "I've told you why. But their visions have to be so we can change things. We won't cause them, but we can stop it from happening."

"By declaring war? On who? Everyone?"

"Yes. No. Maybe. And not war, per se, but… surgical strikes. I know of a group out there that's just begging for leadership. Together, you and me, we can make the world safe."

"Safe for who?" Jiaying threw her hands up in the air. "War isn't safe."

"War's not. But the result afterwards will be." Zee's voice was getting loud. "You see how the War against Hitler is going? The Allied Forces are stopping a lot of death."

"They are. And now you want to add another war on top of this one? Maybe cause it to keep going? Daisy, I appreciate you wanting to help save my people…"

"My people, too."

Jay had the decency to look apologetic. "Right. Our people, Daisy. But you're wanting to take untrained villagers, powerful for sure, but they are not soldiers."

"They don't have to be." Zee shot back. "But we can take the time to train them. To get them used to working together towards a common cause. They wouldn't have to hide who they were any longer. No longer being trapped in the mountains."

"And what's wrong with Afterlife?"

"Nothing, Jay. It's great here. I love Afterlife. I love you. But we're growing. Half of the village is either pregnant or trying to get pregnant. And with my teleportation, you've bene able to bring dozens of potential Inhumans here."

"You can make more space."

"True." Zee acknowledged. "The Expansion Charms can give us more indoor space, but the area within the Wards I've created is limited. There's only so much room."

"You can make more."

Zee shook her head in the negative. "It only goes so far. If I try to layer the Charms on top of one another, they might collapse. That would be bad."

Jiaying crossed her arms across her chest. "Then we can make another Afterlife. We'll find a new spot to create a new community."

"Or we force the Muggles to accept us."

"Muggles?" Had she said that? "Daisy, what's a Muggle?"

There was absolutely no safe answer. "Nothing. An old term from where I'm from. Never mind."

She could see that Jay wanted to press the issue of the word, but they were already too far into the current discussion. Any deviation might derail the whole thing, and Jay knew that.

"Daisy. The Elders don't want to start a fight… and I agree with them." She held her hand up. "I know that you have some possible insight to the future, but we are not going to be a part of your crusade. We've all talked it over, and while there were a few that wanted to explore a more aggressive stance towards the rest of the world, the majority opposes it."

"But, Jay…"

"It's not going to happen, Daisy."

"I can't stay, Jiaying." Zee offered into the silence that had followed the pronouncement. "I've fought too long to just try to wait it all out. To hope for peace through avoidance."

Zee ignored the tears that fell from her lover's eyes, tears that matched the ones falling down her own cheeks. They'd been together less than a year, but the two of them had rarely been apart since meeting in London. The sorcerers had been given a pass, as well, since Jay had convinced her that letting it go was the smarter option; a choice that Zee didn't actually agree with then or now, but she wasn't going to have her ire at this world's magic users make things difficult for Jiaying and Afterlife.

She could go after them now, however.

"I don't want you to go, Daisy. I love you."

Zee nodded. "I love you, too."

*I'm going to be sick.*

She ignored Zo-Kalar. "I wish I could stay, but everything in me says that to do so is a mistake. It's always been bad when I ignored my gut instincts, you know?"

"Where will you go?"

"I don't really know for sure. Probably the United States." She answered quietly, her voice rough. "From my memories of history from my Earth, that's where a lot of the bigger changes coming happen. This war will be over soon. I'll start looking into how I can prevent what I can on my own."

Jiaying wiped at her face. Goddess, but she was beautiful, even when sad. "Do you need anything? Supplies? Or money?"

"I'll be fine. I know you were planning on looking for those people that went missing from the village at the base of the mountain. I can still help, if you'd like."

"No. I can handle it."

Zee stood there, trying to figure out exactly what her next move should be.

"I'm going to go, then." Jiaying said. "I guess that I'll stay with Casey tonight. Let you pack." When Zee only nodded, Jiaying seemed to break a little. "Will you come back? Back to me?"

"Maybe. Hopefully." Zee's own voice shook. "After all, being that we two might be the only two immortals around, I'm sure that we will find a way back to one another."

Zee wasn't sure if it was Jay or herself that moved first, but suddenly they were in each other's arms, kissing like it might be their last. She hoped that it wouldn't be the final time they saw one another, got the chance to hold each other. To kiss and be loved. Zee thought that maybe she didn't have to leave just yet… and then Jiaying was gone. The door to their home, now just Jiaying's home once again, swung shut.

With a negligent wave of her hand, Zee's possessions (those few things that she had accumulated since coming to Afterlife) were packed in the satchel Jay had had made for her. So easy that she was ready to go; but there was really no other choice…

*We could force them. It's within your power to change her mind. The Elders' minds.*

"No." Zinnia offered to the empty room. A witch and her Demonic overlord. "This isn't the army we need. They have power, but not the drive to do what we need them to do. Besides… we've got time."

Zo-Kalar sighed within her mind. *Agreed.*

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"The what, exactly?"

Howard Stark smiled that smarmy grin of his, as he took another sip at the expensive scotch he'd ordered to go along with their dinner. That it was maybe the fourth one of the night would have worried her if she cared one whit whether he died from alcohol poisoning or not. He was a means to an end, though Zinnia was seriously wishing that she'd tried to seduce the Carter woman instead.

"We're calling it the Strategic Headquarters, International Espionage, Law-Enforcement Division. S.H.I.E.L.D. for short." Howard offered, his voice full of mirth. "Or was it Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate? I can't really remember at the moment. It'll probably change again before we're done."

"But, S.H.I.E.L.D., you say? No matter what the words mean?" She offered as he took another swallow. Maybe she should have added some poison herself.

"Yeah. We kinda all wanted to honor Rogers' memory. Captain America. His thing was that shield of his. If we can keep his dreams alive, protecting the little guy from bullies, shielding them, as it were, then my legacy can live on alongside his."

"That's very noble of you, Mister Stark."

His grin at her calling him 'noble' ensured that she had him hooked. Sitting across from Howard Stark, acting as if his pitiful attempts at wooing her made Zinnia wish not for the millionth time that it was Jiaying that she was on a date with. That it was her Jay that she was smiling at, possibly going to bed with after this farce of a dinner was ended. But she needed to make sure that he invited her into this organization that he was creating. This Shield.

It had taken nearly a year after leaving Afterlife before there had been any headway into finding where Armin Zola was located. Her memories stolen from Johann Schmidt had led to the various safe houses and hidden bunkers that contained so much stolen wealth and weaponry, but so many of the soldiers and spies and resources that had been a part of HYDRA had been discovered and eliminated by the Allied Forces at the end of the World War… some of them even hunting down HYDRA after the war was declared over. She'd been close to getting to Reinhardt in Austria, but had ultimately gotten there too late, having missed his great find, whatever it had been. Instead, she'd learned that a paramilitary group funded by the Strategic Scientific Reserve of the United States had taken possession of the warehouse's inventory, as well as taken the HYDRA leadership into custody. Tracking the S.S.R. down had not been easy, but names like Stark and Carter had kept coming up, which gave her the lead she needed.

Which led her to now, posing as a Senator's Aide named Lillian Potter. That said Senator was on the Department of Finance's committee that worked alongside the Department of Defense, and therefore had a say in the funding for Stark's spy organization's funding, well so much the better. Stark was male and had a pulse; and Zinnia was female and single and attractive… he really never had a chance.

So, it was an introductory meeting in Washington, D.C., then following Stark and Carter and the others to New York, which led to several one-on-one meetings, and finally moving into this dinner where Stark would lay out everything and then, if all went well, offer her a position within S.H.I.E.L.D., giving her access to its resources, both legally and illegally obtained, as well as its roster of scientists… or, in other words, access to Zola. And then HYDRA, under her control, would own S.H.I.E.L.D.

"… o you say?"

She cursed at herself that she'd missed what Stark had asked.

*He wants to know if you wanted to order dessert. Something about maybe baking the State of Alaska or some other type of strange human confection.*

"I'm a girl, Mister Stark," she answered provocatively. "I want what every girl wants at the end of the meal."

She enjoyed watching him swallow. Twice. "And what would that be, Miss Potter?"

"Chocolate, of course."

He laughed. Howard Stark, for all of his obvious faults, did have a wonderful laugh. It reminded her of poor Cedric Diggory. She watched as he gestured for the waiter, ordering something that screamed decadent and entirely chocolate. It was amusing to witness the poor server trying to explain that what he'd requested wasn't available, not being on the menu. It took so little for Stark to pull out a wad of bills from his wallet, throwing it the flustered young man and telling him to make it happen. As Stark smiled at her, she found herself suddenly unable to resist sharing the humor of the situation.

"Chocolate you shall have, my dear."

"Why, Mister Stark. Are you trying to seduce me, sir?" Gotta go with the classic, Katie would always say.

"And if I were?"

*How much of his money have you siphoned from his accounts? You should just go ahead and kill him. You can take his place and name yourself to this shield board and just make it HYDRA from the beginning.*

She ignored Zo-Kalar, purposefully not looking around the dining area; the walls were covered in mirrors. Even the ceiling. Everywhere she Zee looked, her not-reflection was there, egging her on to do darker and darker choices. To simply take what she wanted in order to get to their final goal, rather than the slow, methodical approach that she felt was best. She'd held Him off so far, but the temptation to use the magical powers flowing through her veins was getting harder and harder to resist. She felt the magic forming under her fingertips, chaos waiting to be unleashed…

"I'm not too late for dessert, am I?" A melodic voice came from over her shoulder.

The power forgotten momentarily, she looked up to see Peggy Carter standing at the table, the off shoulder gown definitely fitting in with the rest of this establishment's patrons. Miss Carter's ensemble in deep red might have been a touch more daring than Zee's own sequined black, although their shoes matched in height. Zee tried to ignore the thought of the two of them in bed wearing only the heels.

"Peggy." Howard Stark nearly vibrated in his seat, at the other woman's presence. Zee would have been offended if she had actually wanted to spend the rest of the evening alone in his company. Carter was a much better choice. "Sit down. Sit down. What brings you here tonight?"

The agent's smile as she sat at the empty chair to Zee's right was anything but polite. "Howard, you know that you're not supposed to be talking about… things… without me or Colonel Phillips along." Her smile was almost all teeth.

"Peggy." He responded to her admonishment like a scolded teenage. More like Ron than Cedric now, to her consideration. "Miss Potter and I were just going over…"

"Ah, yes. Miss Potter." The former Agent Carter turned her gaze towards her. "How is Senator Brandt?"

*She's trying to catch you in a lie." Zo-Kalar whispered… like she couldn't have figured that out all on her own.

"I'm sure Senator Brandt is fine I'm sure, although I rarely see him as I stay quite busy in Senator Neill's office." She smiled back at the other English born woman. "But it's an easy mistake to make, as there are so many upstanding American men willing to govern this great nation. Unless it wasn't a simple error and you're trying to make a point?"

She sipped at her wine. Miss Carter had obviously not considered that she might be called out for the attempt at subterfuge, if that was what she had intended. Stark's partner eyed her a little more carefully now.

"Fine. I don't like you. And your references are too perfect." Carter finally stated. "All my contacts either sing your praises or have absolutely no idea who you are. That screams bad news to me. I want to know what's going on, and you letting Howard seduce you isn't going to work."

"Hey." Howard jumped into their little showdown. "Nobody's letting me do anything."

Zinnia laughed. "I'm sorry, Howard. Miss Carter is somewhat correct."

"Aha!" Carter cried suddenly. It was loud enough that it startled the poor waiter that was carrying their chocolate dessert to the table. Luckily, while it was a close thing, he was able to safely set the platter down onto the table. He ran away before anyone could ask for anything further.

"I've read the reports of what was really going down at the end of the War and right after. The things that HYDRA had apparently been up to. I begged Senator Neill for the chance to help. To be a part of making the Earth safe."

"You? A Senator's Aide?" Peggy Carter scoffed. Howard Stark just looked as if he just realized how badly she had been playing him. She almost wanted to admit how it had required several Confundus Charms and quite a few low level sweeps using Legilimency to get as close as she had, but that would require revealing way more than Zee was prepared to offer.

"Of course not." She retorted. "I'm a quiet, independent operative. I've seen the writing on the wall, and I understand the need for something like S.H.I.E.L.D. And I want in. You can see that I have the skills and abilities to be an asset, rather than a potential enemy down the road."

"You think you could be a threat?"

Zinnia let her happy face drop. "There are now six people here tonight watching Mister Stark and I have dinner for reasons other than they might want to sleep with me. The gentleman in the dark coat in the corner is one of yours, as is the couple three tables to the left. The last is the bartender.

"Not one of your people is the prickly little fellow against the far left wall. I'm pretty sure he's Russian, but as I haven't heard his accent up close, I'm not one hundred percent sure."

Both of her companions at the table had gone still at her pronouncement. Peggy got over it first. "That's five. You said six."

"I did. There's the pretty blonde female that actually followed you in. She's watching you more than either Mister Stark or me, although she could have just been late to the party." Zee was impressed that neither immediately looked over to confirm who was where she had reported them to be, but at reporting the blonde woman shadowing Agent Carter. "Do you recognize her?"

"Dottie Underwood."

At the venom in the other woman's voice, Zee spooned a healthy piece of the chocolate cake into her mouth.

Delicious.

"Do you want any of them detained? Killed?"

At her question, Stark looked carefully at her. "That's a dangerous woman. And I would know. You really think you're good enough to kill her?"

Zee ignored Stark and watched Carter. "Well?"

"A test, then." Peggy finally said. "If you can capture her, then you're in. Probationary status until I .m convinced you're on our side."

"Done." She spooned a second spoonful of the cake into her mouth. Zee ignored how the entire room suddenly broke out into a cacophony of broken glass and exclamations of shock and surprise, with several diners calling for a doctor or some other type of help as the blonde woman – Dottie Underwood, according to Agent Carter – suddenly collapsed to the marble floor of the restaurant, unable to be roused successfully.

Zinnia could have tried explaining that the woman wouldn't wake from the Sleeping Beauty Curse without the proper counter spell, but the explanation wouldn't really do anyone else any good. Magic was so much fun.

"So," One last spoonful of chocolate. So, so good. She quietly enjoyed the twin looks of shock on their faces as she daintily laid her spoon down and dabbed at lips with napkin. "When do I start?"

HYDRA would be hers. And maybe S.H.I.E.L.D., too.

So easy.


	5. Who Might Win

Zinnia Lillian Potter would never have really considered herself to be a genius; that was a title that had best fit her best friend, Hermione, back in the old reality. That's not to say that Zee wasn't smart. No, she was fairly brilliant in her own way, on subjects that she either had a natural aptitude for or had made the extra effort to master. And now, being in the past on a new Earth in a new reality, while there were obvious differences, Zee could fairly well predict how the future of this world was going to go, as well, her concept of sciences not yet fathomed helped to make her appear even smarter than she actually might be. Zee should have been able to understand.

Computers and electronics, cellular telephones and the like were the way of the future. Zee knew that. And so, she made every effort to personally invest in trying to learn about the coming computer age. Sure, it was still decades away, but there was time, right?

From what Zee could discern from watching Zola work on computers that were archaic in comparison to what she remembered they had into the twenty-first century, she was an idiot. It simply boggled her mind. She had even tried to cheat, diving into Zola's mind to gain some sense of understanding. The headache was almost as bad as when she'd forced her way into Luna Scamander's head to discover the old D.A.'s plans to capture her after Hermione's death.

In the basement of the temporary headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D., in a room filled with walls of computers, where under lock and constant supervision, scientists and other geniuses of varying fields worked to usher in the new age of technology, all under the guise of building up S.H.I.E.L.D., and of protecting the world. It was here, hidden from the blue skies and fresh air up above, that Zinnia had finally made contact with Arnim Zola… the little toady that Schmidt had relied so heavily upon – to know the hidden secrets of HYDRA's true purpose. And while Zee apparently would never personally know how computers and technology worked, she was smart enough to make sure that she held dominion over those that could understand.

Zola had cackled like an old movie villain when Zee had approached him, claiming knowledge from Schmidt (the self-proclaimed Red Skull). He had laughed, the idea that HYDRA had infiltrated the Americans' organization before it had even taken its first step. But he had seen that her information was right, though he would never know how Zee had trapped the leader of the organization alone on a barren planet across the universe. No, he chose to accept Zinnia (under the yet another alias. This time, Michelle Brady) and began issuing orders for her to follow.

She'd allow the old fool the folly of believing he was in control. He was trapped, a prisoner and unwilling servant to S.H.I.E.L.D., but through her his legacy could live on. That she could have freed him at any time, making their escape to almost anywhere, was but one of the reasons she was able to listen to him prattle on about how, as a man, he knew what was best. That this Earth was like the last; women supposedly weaker and less than their male counterparts. She had even seen it with Peggy Carter, a capable agent and administrator that was constantly overlooked and disregarded when men were supposedly making the tough and important decisions. But Zee followed Zola's instructions. At first, to humor the old man… but later, she came to see just how scarily brilliant he was.

Some of the predictions he made, under what he called a mathematical certainty, were so spot on that Zee often considered the possibility that Zola was a seer of some type.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"I wonder what Johann would have made of you, frau'lein, had the two of you met under circumstances more in his favor than yours. I wonder if I would be your jailer… or perhaps I would still be under your control, but it would be in Germany, instead."

Zinnia had made sure not to give away an indication that his statement affected her in any way. "I'm sorry, doctor." She had offered instead. "I don't believe I've ever met anyone named Johann before."

"No? My mistake. It's just that you are almost the epitome of what he was striving for: as ruthless and cold as you are beautiful. That you are every bit the monster that he claimed to be as the Red Skull, but able to hide it all under such innocent loveliness… it goes against all logical reason that you are not a byproduct, in whatever small way, of his influence."

"Really?"

"Oh, yes. Without you in the equations, it would have taken me at least two decades to have HYDRA in readiness to take control of S.H.I.E.L.D. Your presence will make it happen in half the time, perhaps less, and will help prevent many of those that are doubtless to appear later from happening."

"For who to appear?" She was honestly curious.

"The gifted, of course, dear Miss Potter." He smiled as he carefully cleaned his glasses. "The likes of Rogers and Schmidt were only the beginning. The Tesseract helped prove the existence of intelligence beyond our world, not to mention that there is something otherworldly about you, too."

He carefully placed his spectacles upon his nose and stared at her, his eyes boring into her own. "There is something about you that makes me think that the course of our history has changed significantly with you here… and possibly not for the better, and not for the cause you claim we both share. No, you are like the plagues of God, and woe be any now or in the future that dares oppose you."

She almost smiled at his words. Merlin's damnable knobby staff, but her not-reflection almost looked giddy at the man's prediction. "And that doesn't frighten you?"

"Not at all, frau'lein. In fact," he smiled. "I will help you burn the world to the ground." He paused. "Do you think Johann would approve?"

"No." Zinnia smiled back. "But only because the match will be mine."

"True."

"What can you tell me about those to come?"

Zola typed – pecked, really - at the terminal in front of him for a few moments before returning his attention back to her. "Hitler and Schmidt were both obsessed with the occult. They sought for magical solutions where science should have been the focus. Schmidt was unfortunate enough to actually find the magic he was looking for, which prevented him from delving deeper into that which we could control, could understand."

"I get that, but you talked about people that were going to be gifted." She prompted.

"Dear girl, we have proven that science can force back the laws of nature and God, making men that are of legend and myth. But if we did it now with science, who can deny that in ages past, alchemists and men of the old ways didn't do the same? Mayhap those stories were all true? Maybe we just unlocked the door to something that had bene locked away for a reason; and if we did, then who's to say that more won't start appearing faster and more often now that the proverbial cat is out of the bag?"

"But…"

"There is no alternative." He stopped her from giving a counterargument. "I personally know of three other experiments that should lead to enhancements that will create chaos in the coming years. And that is excluding you, who might be the greatest factor against my algebraic model of the days to come."

He turned to face her directly. "Technology and chemistry have opened the box, but you will be the reason it will never be closed again. Howard Stark's legacy will likely be at the forefront of much that will come, but those that left the Tesseract here will come looking again. It is just too powerful to have been forgotten. And those are just the beginning."

"The beginning?"

"Of a new age of angels and demons warring over the fate of man."

She nodded along with what he was saying. "And I'll be leading the demons, I presume?"

"No. You'll be the god watching over them."

*I like him. We'll let him live for now.*

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Who knew that money would be the start of her godhood?

At Zola's insistence, Zinnia had purchased stock into Roxxon Oil. It initially had seemed nothing more than one of several oil corporations that tried to destroy the Earth's natural resources, but in fact, Roxxon's research and development department was dabbling in Zero Matter. And while Zero Matter had created a small amount of interest with Stark and Carter due to their exposure to its unique properties, it had been pushed to the side for other immediate concerns. That left Zee the opportunity to foster the Brady persona and help steer Roxxon's development of dimensionally displaced energy. Even Zo-Kalar had taken an interest in the dark energy, claiming how it reminded him of the Ancient Great Ones… and if their divine power could be harnessed, the need for an army would be moot.

That had definitely peeked her attention.

The Zero Matter (or Darkforce, as Howard Stark often referred to it) felt almost like magical energies to Zinnia. The little amount that she had been able to get near, had fallen easily under her control – a fact that her not-reflection insisted was due to their presence, although Zee could remember feeling that sort of power well before ever donning the Hallows or becoming Zo-Kalar's Priestess, but that could wait. Roxxon could continue to study it, for the moment.

So, while Zola was busy attempting to subvert S.H.I.E.L.D. from the inside, manipulating almost everything that the organization touched and acting as the hidden body of the mythical (on this Earth apparently) hydra, Zinnia and her various aliases acted as the heads and sought out opportunities to help Zola in his quest.

Western Europe was a hot spot of for intelligence work. She had thought that adding to the chaos would further her plans, but surprisingly both the leaders of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Zola felt that adding her into the mix would be counterproductive, although their end goals were completely opposite. Instead, she was directed towards Eastern Europe and South Asia, and while Zee considered reclaiming the Daisy Black persona and visiting Jiaying, she knew that it wasn't yet time to do so. They were essentially immortal; there would be time for maybe love… maybe. Instead, the once heralded Witch-Who-Won made her way into the Islamic region of the world.

It was during her time in Pakistan that Zinnia came across a militant group of disillusioned soldiers and rebels and exiles that wanted to create positive change, but had neither the means nor the might to make their voices heard. There were several separate factions that all believed that they could make a difference, if only the opportunity presented itself. Zee became that opportunity. Using the Glamour Charm to take on a more Asian appearance, Zee approached the young men, offering them both money and weapons, offering them the chance to become something much more. To make a difference.

To each of the ten leaders, she offered a ring that she imbued with a tiny amount of magic; enough so that it would act as a minor shield versus projectile weapons, as well as protection versus poisons. The newly joined forces called themselves the Ten Rings, after her gifts, and then she named Zhang Tong, one of the most charismatic leaders as her go-between, using the codename of The Mandarin. Together, they would begin direct their groups into infiltrating the local village governments, allying together, so that they could influence the populace to demand changes in the larger elections when they came about.

Faster than Zee thought possible, under her direction through Tong, the Ten Rings had absorbed many of the other rebel factions and their influence spread across India and started making its way into Nepal, Tibet and ultimately China. She made sure that they left the villages around Afterlife alone, but she supported all of The Ten Rings endeavors to take charge of the ruling classes.

Everything was working perfectly until they attempted to make their way into southern China. Zee had been contemplating pushing S.H.I.E.L.D. to set up a permanent office in the Hong Kong area, but was constantly being rebuffed, their citing that all attempts at establishing a base of operations there had been met with disaster every time. Her meetings with Tong and the rest of the Ten Rings went very similar.

"I don't understand." Zinnia spoke into the telephone on the desk she was currently utilizing. "We paid for the office space, the permits are all submitted and in order. We even bribed the officials and inspectors. Why are we getting stonewalled?"

Chen, her go-to guy in this city, was currently setting up lunch for the both of them plus the other two that currently were a part of trying to set up a dummy corporation to sponsor their candidate for a local election. While the Ten Rings had made a lot of progress in the more rural areas of southern Asia, even getting a pretty good foothold in Vietnam and Korea, the more industrial areas of China seemed to fail before they could even get started.

Someone or something was blocking them, and Zee was not happy about it.

"We have at least two local opponents making waves against us." One of the others offered in response to Zinnia's exclamation. "We knew that the underworld was already well established out here. Plus, with all the rumors of magic…"

"Magic?"

Chen offered gestured for Zee to sit at the table. "Yeah. It's been that way always. My grandmother still tells stories of the Wu that battled the 'Yami no te' in the markets when she was a little girl."

"Wu?"

"Sorcerers. Shaman. Basically any practioner of the supernatural." Chen replied.

Zinnia took a few moments to eat. As everyone else in the room sat at the table to enjoy the quick meal, as well, she formulated how to ask the questions she needed answered. "Do we know where any of these – Wu – are? Or those that opposed them? Are they still around?"

Mindi, the other female of the small group, chose to answer so that the other two could finish eating. "Depends on what you're wanting to accomplish. All of us born here know the stories that Chen's grandmother told him. My own grandparents say that it is better to owe the ninja clans than to be indebted to the Wu."

"Do you know where the Wu are?" Zee insisted. "Or these ninja that fought them?"

The Yami no te find you, not the other way around." Chen added. "If we keep trying to do what we're doing, they will probably make themselves known. That's not to say that they haven't already started to oppose us. They could be a part of why we're not making any real progress here."

"And the stories say only sorcerers can find other sorcerers." Mindi filled in. "It's not like it was fifty year ago. Hell, even maybe just twenty years ago when there was a… what's the English word? A witch. Like a witch in every village."

She nodded as the others went back to finishing their meals when Zinnia didn't ask any more questions. These four - Chen, Mindi, Lee and Sharif – they didn't really know who she was, that Zee Evans (the name she'd offered upon introductions) was the power behind the Mandarin and the Ten Rings. No, to them and who the people of Hong Kong would see was a close approximation to what Cho looked like at twenty-five. These members of their rebellion though her only another soldier prepared to do whatever necessary to complete the objective.

Maybe these so-called sorcerers might be better receptive to her, as opposed to those that she had faced off against in London so many years ago now. In Zinnia's original reality, while China and Japan were members of the ICW, there was constant friction against the European Wizards and Witches and their arrogant regulations. Maybe it would be something similar here.

"I'm going to scout around. Make some inquiries." It wasn't that odd of an idea. Zinnia had only been here for three days; the other four having devoted months of their lives to getting the candidate instilled into the local government. "Besides, I'm due to check in with S.H.I.E.L.D. soon."

All of them nodded in agreement. Using the S.H.I.E.L.D. card would also prevent Lee from trying to join her. Cho had been unbelievably attractive and the males of the group had definitely noticed; Lee more so than the others. He had made his interest known. That she was working for the new American spy organization had put her somewhat on a pedestal to the others, and gave her credibility that otherwise might have meant she'd use some magic of her own to establish.

Lee was almost pouting when she closed the door behind her and moved into the busy street. It was still sometimes jarring to look around and see a society that was fifty years behind what she expected. Hong Kong of the nineteen fifties was practically like her old Wizarding World in comparison to the twenty-first century Hong Kong, with its skyscrapers and neon billboards and never-ending noise.

Morgana, how she missed it all.

She made her way across the street and walked for several blocks before she found a public telephone. Cellphones couldn't get here fast enough!

"Sammy's Deli. What can I do for you?" The number she'd dialed finally answered.

"Is the roast beef fresh today?" Code phrases were ridiculous. "I've got a party of twenty tonight and I'm in a hurry."

The guy on the other end of the line didn't miss a beat. Zee wonder for the thousandth time if it was actually a delicatessen or not. "Pastrami's good, but I recommend the pastrami."

"I'm good with that." So, her regular handler was unavailable and she was being redirected to someone else. Zee wondered what she'd done wrong.

"Iris?" Hank Pym's voice was suddenly in her ear, her codename sounding strange coming from his voice. "What can I do for you?"

"Doctor Pym. I was just checking in. Nothing to report that required speaking with you, sir." She stumbled a bit. Pym was a fairly big deal at S.H.I.E.L.D. and he'd become a fairly close friend… both he and his wife, Janet. For him to be answering a call from a field agent, even her, seemed a bit off. "I'm sorry for bothering you."

"It's no bother, Iris." His voice was warm. "Janet and I have just missed you. You've been several months working the Orient angle, doing good work, but we were hoping to entice you back to the States for a bit."

Zee genuinely felt a smile cross her face. "I'd like that. Things here are probably like Peggy said and not worth trying to push for a base yet. I'll probably be out of here in the next week or so."

"You've done better over there than most before you." He laughed. "Just dot the eye's and cross the tee's and get on a plane back here."

"Yes, sir." She laughed out loud. "Tell Janet that I want her chicken Marsala for dinner when I get back or I'm making good on my threat to steal you away from her."

"Never happen, but I'll tell her."

After hanging up, Zinnia considered once again what it would take to get Hank and Janet away from SHIELD, to bring them both into her inner circle. Not HYDRA, though. Both had fought too hard against them during the War to ever willingly side with the enemy, but for a friend? For Lillian Potter who they both loved and spent time with? Maybe.

Zinnia decided to think on that particular quandary later and decided to open up her magical awareness a little bit more than usual to see if there was any magical residue left behind by this world's sorcerers. There was nothing at first; no really. Every so often, she'd find hints of magic, although from what Zee had observed over the years on this Earth, there were lots of people that had some type of latent abilities that were just waiting to be awoken, and at times their passing could leave a type of magical trail in their wake.

Continuing on towards the center of the city, a pattern of traces began to build in frequency until, almost before she realized it, the actual glow of active magic seemed to be everywhere. Encouraged by this result, Zinnia continued on, never really considering that her movements and unusual path had caught the attention of several interested parties, not all working together. As the sense of magic started to reach a crescendo, Zinnia pulled up short as she realized that she had apparently found the source of the magic within the city of Hong Kong, and she felt her hope fall away at the building's appearance: it was an almost exact copy of the structure in London that had housed the sorcerers there.

She watched the building carefully. While she had not necessarily hidden her approach, she was under her Personal Glamour, so any chance at being recognized should be out unless they could perceive her magical signature, although she could remember Bill Weasley once remarking that his best wards had never been able to accept her since bypassing them required matching magical signatures and hers seemed to always be in a type of flux. Of course, Hermione had wanted to study the effect. Zee had said no.

It was only after watching that she realized that there were seven persons at varying locations around her that were too interested in observing her instead of anything else. Cho was good looking, but she was no Fleur. Something was definitely up.

No time like the present. Zinnia forwent spying on the Sorcerer's headquarters and decided to move away, not the way she'd come, but away from the bystanders and towards a fairly empty stretch of road that was somewhat isolated and would be ideal for getting answers.

Almost as perfect as if Zinnia had planned it out herself, two of those following her made their presence known first. It was almost disappointing, their initial appearance; they were the epitome of stereotypical hired thugs. Low browed, muscle that were more used to having their appearance and the threat of violence doing all of the work for them. She immediately named them Crabbe and Goyle. Malfoy would be so proud, if he could have seen it from whatever Hell he was languishing in currently. Crabbe made the first move, reaching out to grab her arm while Goyle acted as lookout. It was almost painfully too easy to enhance her strength magically – just enough that she was able to grab his arm instead and twist. The awkward angle was just far enough that the telltale "crack" sounded like a gunshot in the quiet alleyway, signaling that his arm was now broken.

At Crabbe's scream of pain, poor Goyle was stuck now with only the option of looking stupid, or at least no more stupid than the gods had forced him to endure the entirety of his life so far. Both of the Neanderthals were suddenly outside of their wheelhouse, as neither had a clue of what to do… well, other than Crabbe who was busy whimpering in pain. She look pity on him and delivered a quick roundhouse kick, courtesy of Peggy's insistence that she be trained in fisticuffs, and put the poor excuse of a ruffian out like a light, which left Goyle now with way too much of a problem for him to solve.

He was saved from having to think when clapping began from behind where Zinnia was currently standing. A quick glance and she found three more of her peanut gallery deciding to make their introduction. All men, and each was more in line to be former professors than school time bullies. Lockhart was definitely the leader of this trio, his sad attempt at a charming smile would definitely not when the Witch Weekly award once, much less five times in a row, but he was trying to disarm her with his good looks. It was probably for the best that he was trying since the two to either side of him were more Moody (to the left) or Snape (to the right).

"Thank you, Thomas." Lockhart spoke to Goyle who was apparently named Thomas. And he spoke to him in Chinese. At his word, Thomas went over and picked up his comatose partner-in-crime and began to leave, apparently their part in the unfolding drama was complete.

The Lockhart wannabe turned his attention to her. "Well done, miss. Very nice." Zinnia nodded but didn't speak. If her silence bothered him, he kept it to himself. "If you would be so kind as to come with me? There is someone who would like to speak with you."

Yeah. That wasn't going to happen.

*It could be fun.* Zo-Kalar spoke up. He'd been strangely silent for longer periods over the past few months, enough that unless there was a mirrored surface for Zee to see her not-reflection, it was almost like He wasn't there… and wasn't that a frightening thought? *We could let loose for a bit?*

"No." Zinnia responded in French. Maybe it would throw them off a bit. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Sorry."

Lockhart tilted his head as he studied her. When he gestured with his left hand. Moody pulled a pistol out from his coat and aimed it directly at her. Zee didn't react, but she did send a small wave of magic towards the offending weapon, twisting the firing pin, making the gun nothing more than a paperweight at the moment.

Not knowing that the threat had already been neutralized, Lockhart smiled darkly. In English this time, he tried again. "You will come with us. Now."

At his words, the Snape lookalike sneered in an almost perfect replication of her old Potions Professor. Now all he needed was the long, black robes billowing out from behind him as he walked. It definitely made her smile.

Zinnia shook her head. "You guys are as dumb as the first two." She offered again in French.

"Fine. We'll play it your way." She watched as he seemed exasperated. "Shoot her in the leg," Her non-reaction to his threat could only lend credence to her not understanding him, although he didn't go so far as to stop henchman number one. Moody smiled as he pulled the trigger.

Click.

"What the fu-" Moody grunted his pull of the pistol's trigger resulted in no bullet being fired. Both Lockhart and Snape turned to look at him as he squeezed the trigger twice more, the result being the same each time.

"Geez. Ho, shoot her."

The Snape-looking thug pulled out his pistol of choice and took aim. Zinnia decided that a little showier might be in order, so she merely threw a shield at the front of the muzzle. The reaction was so much more fun, as the resulting explosion as the bullet's reaction at being suck caused the pistol (as well as Snape's right hand) to explode in a seriously impressive little blast.

"Aaaargh.! Oh, God! Oh, God!" And his scream of pain was even better than Crabbe's had been at his arm being broken. Both Moody and Lockhart were rooted to the spot, their master plan having literally now blown up, with no understanding of how or why things had gone so wrong.

Magic in this reality was definitely weird. The three stooges suddenly seemed to be surrounded by what Zinnia could only really describe as a runic circle made up of light… which meant the sorcerers were now going to be involved. The unnecessary light show continued to circle the trio before they all finally fell to the ground unconscious. Apparently, the sorcerers didn't care if Snape bled out or not, seeing as he was still bleeding rather badly.

The final two of the seven that had been following her made their appearance. Zo-Kalar began laughing inside of her mind as the bald woman leader of the London house stepped into the light, a single acolyte right behind her.

In French, the sorcerers asked. "Are you all right?"

Not sure exactly how to immediately respond, Zee thought to maybe try and play things cool. "I am." She responded in French, as well. "But I had it under control."

"You did, but I would prefer that the locals not report back that they were defeated by a single, independent sorcerer so close to our Sanctum. Peace is tenuous at best here, and I doubt we would be believed to not have bene involved."

"I see." She really didn't. "But you are involved now. You did your little light show and they went to sleep… I'm right that they are asleep, correct?"

"Yes, but since you will come with me, it can all be sorted out without further hostilities." As the bald woman spoke, her follower began moving his hands in some particular manner, as runes and other arcane symbols began forming. From where Zinnia stood, she could feel how he was drawing from his own inner magical core, readying for whatever the two of them had planned.

"Why does everyone want me to go somewhere with them? Asking a single woman such as myself to go off with strangers with no idea of who they are or where they might want to take me, and no one understands why I refuse." Zinnia spoke in English now. "I'm going to tell you what I told the meatheads and the stooges both; no. I will not be going with you."

"You really have no choice." Baldy spoke, her voice sad. "You are the second person I've come across that upsets the fabric of reality. I'm not going to miss out now as I did previously."

It was going to be another fight. Zo-Kalar was cackling now. Zinnia wondered if she should reveal that she was the same person as this so called 'Ancient One' had lost to before, but the idea that these sorcerers had multiple unknowns scouting their sanctums was enough of a reason for her to continue the charade.

The alley that they were all in suddenly lit up as several of those round portals started forming all around her. As Zee watched, these holes in space began appearing on the tops of the two story buildings around her, as well as blocking both ends of the road. From each, a sorcerer appeared; the backgrounds through each portal all seemingly coming from different places – but all of them were, for the most part, similarly dressed. A few carried weapons… and those weapons were what interested Zinnia the most; each glowing with inherent magical properties. One woman carried a sword that sang to Zinnia, much like the fabled Sword of Gryffindor had, back when she had been worthy of drawing it from the Sorting Hat.

She'd have to take that sword.

Eventually, the call-to-arms had apparently ended as no new portals opened. Zinnia took the time to spin in a circle, counting the sorcerers that had bene called; just under two hundred by her rough estimation. If these were all of this reality's Wizarding World, the possibility of ending them here and now and securing her place as the only Witch on Earth would be a bit of a fight, but she was confident with Zo-Kalar's assistance, she would be victorious.

It was tempting, but if they had weapons like what she was seeing, perhaps they had more stashed away somewhere else. It was enough of an idea that even her demonic patron seemed find with not killing all of them – just a few of them. Maybe most of them. Or those few that recognized that she should be in charge.

Transfiguring her clothing to something a little more sturdy and able to take some punishment, Zinnia Glamoured the magically modified clothing into looking like the Auror issued dragon-hide armor she'd had so long ago, down to the red cloak of the office. The look on all of their faces, watching her appearance change from a fairly nice dressed twenty-something Chinese girl into an armored badass that was going to teach them to respect their betters….

*Totally worth it.*

Yeah, it is.

"Let's do this."

There are several schools of thought regarding a fight against overwhelming odds. Many would try to find a solid surface to have at their back, preventing being struck from behind. A good choice, but it also leaves you with very little maneuverability, as well as having your attackers able to aim directly at you. Another choice would be to be in the middle, creating the danger of crossfire for your enemies. Friendly fire (if it could be called that) had been the final end result for many a Death Eater, especially due to the constant use of the Unforgivables. Hiding had always been considered a good choice; the opportunity to attack from a better vantage – but being able to hide after the battle was engaged was never easy.

And then there was who to take down first? Should Zinnia take out their leader in the hope that watching the best of them go down might dishearten them enough to surrender? Or would this end up being more like the battles with Voldemort where he threw everyone else at her in the hopes of wearing Zee down?

Over twenty sorcerers decided to make the first move, their arms suddenly alight with those weird magical configurations, throwing out whips of almost pure magic to capture her, while others started building that mirrored sub-pocket of reality they seemed so fond of.

Zinnia held up her left arm and allowed the tendrils of magic to wrap around; it wasn't an entirely unpleasant experience. While the sorcerers that had seemingly captured her so easily began to pull at her to maybe throw her off balance, Zee threw up a hefty Shielding Charm to prevent any of the magical bolts to come close to her… instead allowing them to ricochet off the protective barrier and into the sorcerers off to the other side.

Friendly fire, indeed.

When the multiple tentacles of magic began to tighten around her arm, Zinnia reversed the polarity of their trap and began to absorb the various sorcerer's inner core, much like a figurative magical leech or vampire. It was an easy Curse to break from, if the targets had bene able to understand exactly what was happening – but no one had expected it, and in mere moments, the sorcerers on the other ends of the ropes of magical energy began falling to the ground dead, each drained of their magic.

By the time anyone realized that their own magics were now feeding into the Shield protecting Zinnia, it was too late.

"Stop her!" Their leader cried as her followers died. Zinnia had only a few moments to prepare, as the world suddenly no longer made sense; the alleyway grew in width and length, as meters became kilometers…. and where the buildings had stood straight, if not tall, they now were turned perpendicular to how the laws of physics was supposed to work. Worse, however, was that the very skies above began to split and turn like a kaleidoscope – random colors and shapes included.

*Tricks. Illusions.*

"Great. Glad you know that. Can you help me out here?" Zee demanded as she had to abandon her Shield and catch the doorway of the shop closest to her, or else there was the chance that she would slide off the side of the world. Maybe in this pocket dimension the Earth was flat. Zee ignored that the sorcerers closest to her seemed shocked that she was apparently talking to herself.

Needing to gain some momentum, Zee started throwing lightning at anyone drawing too close while she tried to gain equilibrium. It wasn't easy since the world kept moving and changing… so much worse than the Department of Mysteries had been.

"Ooof!"

Zinnia was on the ground, having been forcefully tackled by a fairly large sorcerer. Her face struck first, splitting her lip and breaking her concentration.

"Get off of me!" She cried, just as the Shacklebolt wannabe called out in victory. "I've got her."

He was overconfident in thinking that her being on the ground under his bulk meant she was beaten. A blast of solidified air taught him his folly, though by the sound of his hitting the wall, it was his final lesson. Zinnia twisted and began to sit up when several bands on magical force picked her up and then threw her back to the ground, forcing the breath out of her lungs.

"You murdered Lena." Was spit at her by a cute redhead, although the hatred in her eyes kinda ruined the momentary fantasy for Zee. "I'm going to ri- urgh, kaa, sssssi." The magic holding Zee down was released once the sorcerers was now struggling to breath. It was a shame. Really. But in the choice of Zee or anyone else, Zee was going to choose herself.

The redhead fell lifelessly to the packed dirt the lined the alley. The newly formed Shield that surrounded where Zee was trying to sit up continued to ring like an old church bell, the spell fire dancing all around her… they were definitely not giving up. She wiped at her eyes as she tried to focus, peering through her protection to catch a glimpse of what she was now facing, only to see that except for the small area that Zinnia had magically sealed, the world had been manipulated to give the sorcerers all of the advantages of height and cover, leaving Zee with only her magic to keep her safe.

There were so many of them… perhaps she had been too full of herself.

No.

She just needed to stop playing games.

*Finally.*

Finally.

"Aaarrrrrggghhhhhh!" She screamed, releasing a near tsunami of magical energy out form where she was standing. It was not a spell, but literally Zee pushing her magic away from her body in a Hail Mary attempt at giving herself the few scant seconds she required. Everyone had been knocked back, pushed either further away or forced to hide behind their protective barriers. It had even ripped apart Zee's own Shield Charm, but it was worth the pain.

As her hearing returned, Zinnia listened as the cries of "get her" or "now" and even "charge" came from every direction. She knew that their magic was already cast. There was no opportunity to prevent the dozen of spells headed her way to be blocked, but they were shortly understand that they had lost. And lost spectacularly.

Zee had cast Fiendfyre.

She had once tried explaining to Tonks the absolute bliss that came from surrendering to the flame. In another life and with the chance to choose another path, Zinnia could freely admit that she would have been a pyromaniac. The amazing dance that the flame offered, chaos in its most pure form, as unforgiving as the sun in the desert sky…and how it called to her; sang to her. It was so breathtaking that magic could give life to something so unforgivingly fair it what it consumed. So rare was there the chance to let it out.

That Zee was now incapacitated and bound by the various magics of the sorcerers meant nothing to any of them at the moment. Their bald leader… she maybe should have learned her actual name to put on her tombstone… she was calling for those that could escape to do so, while already over half of those that followed her had been swallowed by the living flame that Zee had called.

When she had first cast Fiendfyre, it had taken on the appearance of a herd of deer, led by Prongs in all of his majestic glory. She had cried for her father then more than when he had appeared against the Dementors from her Third Year, saving Sirius. The next, before Zo-Kalar had revealed Himself, but after claiming the mantle of Mistress if Death, the flames had taken the form of what she had assumed had been a squid – its tentacles lashing the unending flames all about. She questioned if it had in fact actually been a squid. When she'd razed Hogwart's School to the ground, it had changed again, though now appeared as a sea serpent, its size too massive to really understand until you saw that it encircled the entire castle before crushing it.

As the sorcerers tried again and again to extinguish the living avatar or fire, Zinnia smiled as she watch the dawning acceptance of death appear on their faces, one after the other. There were so few left now. Zee witnessed a number that escaped this prison. A few thought to attempt coming after her in the hopes that the spell would end. She would have loved to explain that this mirror reality was the Fire's domain now and forever. One of the sorcerers would have to forever guard that this construct of reality, ensuring that the indescribable monster that her Fiendfyre had become would never escape.

Their chains faded as the magic was lost to either no longer enforcing the magic with their will, or the caster had perished… or even maybe they'd gone too far away to keep it active. It was no matter. Zinnia stood up and walked over to the body of the Shacklebolt looking fellow. This so-called Sling Ring that they were so sure was the only way to teleport around. She carefully removed it from the corpse's hand to study.

Extending her magical awareness, the properties of the ring were almost like a runic cluster that resembled the Floo Network. Given enough time, she could easily replicate its abilities… but the better though was to break the Pattern it used, making it and every other Sling Ring useless.

That sounded like a lot more fun.

The Fiendfyre was scouring the reach of its domain. Making a quick count, over half… possibly three-quarters of the sorcerers were dead (and unfortunately, the bald leader was not among the deceased). From the occasional scream in the distance, a few were still in this reality. A quick Accio and all of the Sling Rings within this false existence were in front of her, meaning either the remaining sorcerers either needed to learn how to teleport themselves, or accept that this was their new reality.

Making sure that she left nothing of worth behind, Zee teleported out.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Surprisingly, the near annihilation of the sorcerers did absolutely nothing in helping the Ten Rings to get their candidate into the elections. That would have to wait for another day… S.H.I.E.L.D. awaited. It was definitely time to return to see Hank and Janet Pym.

Though it took nearly a month and a half to get to her after she'd left Hong Kong, a letter addressed to Zee Evans had appeared at the Ten Rings' safe house, offering an opportunity to meet with an interested party in the Chinese elections of the future. It had been signed simply "Gao."


	6. Wisdom to Choose

AUTHOR'S NOTE –

At this point in the story, trying to include Zinnia into the Marvel Cinematic Universe's convoluted timeline becomes really tricky. There are so many source materials (including, but not limited to, movies and shorts and television shows) that don't give proper dates on when something happened exactly. Also, as Zinnia is screwing with said history, many events that were to occur later in said source materials will be changed – sometimes in small ways and others in huge ways.

What I'm getting at is that the timeline is mine now. Please do not waste time on comments regarding that something in the MCU didn't happen that way. I know. But I need things to happen my way for the story to work… or, at least I hope it works.

Thanks for reading.

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Okay. Zinnia could admit it. Some of this world's sorcery was pretty good. Recreating the sling ring was easy peasy, but trying to manipulate the actual magical formula that allowed them to work and thereby rendering any remaining sling ring useless was a problem more in the area of Hermione than for Zee. In other words, it was too damn hard. In fact, rendering them inoperable was practically impossible. What she could do, however, was to lay an actual Curse on the Runic Cluster, causing a backlash of magical energy whenever it was used.

She'd lay a trap for the remaining sorcerers later. Zee still wanted that sword, plus whatever other enchanted items they might have. And books. She was sure they had to have magical books somewhere.

"Good morning, Lillian."

Peggy Carter's voice interrupted her musings. Turning to seek out the S.H.I.E.L.D. council member, Zee smiled to see Agent Janet Pym with her. Nothing but trouble could come of those two seeking her out this early on a Friday.

"Hey guys. What's got the both of you smiling like that?"

"We're thinking of going to the World's Fair this weekend." Janet supplied.

Peggy nodded along. "And since Howard's World Exposition is happening right alongside of the Fair, we though since we get free tickets anyway that we should go see what all the fuss is all about."

"And we decided you have to come with us."

"Since it's been a while since we've let loose for a few days."

Zee shook her head in exasperation. These two were like Daphne and Tracey back in school. "Any chance I can get out of this?"

The two women looked at one another before both smiling at her. At the same time, they said nope, as if rehearsed… which it might actually have been.

"What about Hank, Jan? Or your husband, Peg?"

Peggy answered quickly, obviously expecting the question. "They both told us to not go over budget and to make sure we had a good time…"

"But not too good of a time." Janet interrupted.

"Right." Peggy took up the train of thought without a problem. "And that we had to bring you along just in case we did decide to get into any trouble as you always seemed to be able to avoid getting in to too hot of water."

"So, the truth then." Zee smirked. "I'm to play chaperone to the two of you. Do they know me at all?"

Janet laughed. "If they never realize that you are the one that gets us into all of the trouble in the first place, then you being the mother of the trip makes it all the better."

"Fine." She answered. "But no trying to set me up with a husband this time, all right? You two being so deliriously happy is enough for me."

"But I know this really cute guy, Lils." Peggy started.

"No."

"He's rich, too." Janet offered. "He's partners with Mister Stark. Looks, brains and money."

"So why's he still single?"

"Why don't we find him this weekend and ask him?"

"No."

"Oh, posh, Lils. You are absolutely no fun whatsoever."

Choosing to ignore Peggy for the moment, Zee stood from her desk chair and cut off the desk lamp, making sure to throw the sling ring she'd been examining into the drawer and carefully locking it. The fact that she also set a Ward over the entire desk might have been overkill, but better safe than sorry.

"What was that?" Peggy asked.

Zinnia sighed. "A possible oh-eight-four, actually." When the other two women gasped, she nodded and then directed them both out of her tiny office. "While in China, I came across one of these. It's supposed to be magical, but I haven't figured anything out about it yet."

"I don't remember a report on a ring. It was a ring, right?"

She shook her head at the superior agent. "No report because I have no idea if it's actually worth of the classification. It doesn't seem to work, but I can log it in if you're like."

Peggy thought about it for a moment. "I guess not. But when you're done with it, send it down to are and dee and see if they get anything from it, okay?"

"That was my plan."

"Okay." Janet interrupted before either she or Peggy could continue. "Enough work. It's the weekend and I'm away from my husband. Time to let loose."

"You're right."

"Let's go."

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How had she missed it?

She had proven herself the rule rather than the exception as a Witch - she had focused so hard on magic and her own superiority that she failed to recognize that her very own fears had blinded her to the truth that had been staring her right in the face the entire time. The yawning blackness that had been Zo-Kalar's kind in her own reality, those that she had feared so horribly, were nothing but a figment of her own warped imagination here.

No, the danger in this universe wasn't the Ancient Great Ones and their spawn (though they were still dangerous), but rather the very technology that existed here.

For thirty years now Zinnia had clawed her way through various skirmishes with the remaining sorcerers, learning of their three primary strongholds, forcing them to remain hidden behind those mystical walls. The stalemate of letting them hide there gave her the freedom to continue her pursuits of building up S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA, until only she knew how far each was inter-tangled with the other. Her own hubris at manipulating the various groups and important people that she had missed how the very brilliance of those she thought under her control had begun to create a danger that made even the thought of looking at her non-reflection terrified her again.

Zola's had finally succumbed to the ravages of time and sickness, possibly on purpose in order to escape from Zee's control. The years that she had made use of the mad scientist had led to their animosity towards one another, especially after she had taken some of his so-called master plans and used them for her own. She had bene forced to use several mind magics to force him to continue aiding her, but it was never the same. Zola had eventually found his escape by pretending to come to her with an offering of knowledge, a she felt his end was near.

In her own ignorance, Zee had assisted him in what she was sure was to be his final request – the saving of his intellect; all of that wondrous plans and ideas, to be saved on the S.H.I.E.L.D. computer servers, all there for her to retrieve and use at leisure. But, no… Zola had done the impossible and actually found a way to upload his very consciousness into the computers. He had become a technological abomination of his own creation, something beyond her ability to control.

Zola had beaten her.

Zinnia often wondered later if the she had been too concerned with the arrival of a Great Old One in Missouri and It's impregnation of a human woman to pay attention to what Zola had been up to. The fact that a Great Old One existed in this reality had scared her into making so many mistakes that it was almost unforgivable… Zola's ascension into what he had become being just the first.

The second potential mistake had been when Zee Evans, as Zola's acknowledged successor, had been called to meet with the HYDRA elite at the Malick Mansion, at the behest of Nathaniel and Gideon Malick. While there, she was introduced into the misguided practice of sending a sacrifice into a gateway Monolith. The fools were right in the thought that HYDRA was to be the tool of a demonic god, they had just chosen the wrong one. Zinnia and Zo-Kalar didn't share. The stink of the Ancient Great One had surrounded the portal rock, so much so, that Zinnia had immediately destroyed the Monolith, revealing her magic, and therefore had been forced to murder all that had been present. That she alone had come away from the meeting of such a prominent family within the HYDRA organization led to her having to kill off the Zee Evans alias that she had been fond of, requiring more time to rise within the ranks of the very structure she had built.

After "killing off" Zee, she began carefully looking at her other personas. Even properly aged with Glamour, it became apparent that it was time for the Lillian Potter alias to die; she was in her late fifties by now, which meant that the friendships and allies created would have to be reestablished.

So one Lillian's final acts into the organization she had helped build and turn into the global peacekeeping agency it had supposedly become was for Pandora Peters to be vetted and recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D. And while the Pandora Peters disguise was in an excellent position to start making new changes within, her limited access to the Council now left a lot to be desired… which is why the creation of the Arc Reactor by Howard Stark was such a blow – that such a narcissistic arse could create such a technology that was able to somehow interfere with her magical abilities though Zinnia for a loop. It was too dangerous to allow to exist, though she was hard pressed to convince him under her new guise to trust her.

No.

Stark Industries would have to be destroyed.

Zee remembered a name… Obadiah. Obadiah Stane. He was Howard's go to guy. There was something that was on the edge of her thought process, a memory or something besides Janet and Peggy trying to set her up with him. Something Zola had once remarked on. Oh, right… he was greedy. Such an admirable quality for a possible minion to possess. Perhaps he could be encouraged to make a play for Stark Industries… with the right amount of backing, Howard's legacy could be broken and absorbed into her own plans. Although Zee remembered that Zola might have already had a plan to eliminate Howard Stark in play.

She'd have to wait and see if there would be an opportunity to make use of whatever idea Zola had enacted.

And so the seventies passed by. Not nearly as successful as the past two decades had been for her, but extended plans had to be tweaked often, especially as her presence within this reality had surely made changes for beyond what she could discern. But the coming decade would possibly be worse, but not in any way that Zee would understand for a long, longtime.

The nineteen eighties were difficult for the once feared Dark Enchantress as the weight of the years began to take their toll. Even the constant banter with her not-reflection seemed to have lost its appeal. Her once friends, Hank and Janet Pym had a daughter at the decade's beginning whom they named Hope, the meaning behind Lillian's codename of Iris; a fact that Janet had confided to Peggy and Pandora when they'd met the child. A happy birth, as opposed to the monstrosity that was born of the union between the human woman and the Great Old One that continued to visit. Zinnia debated long and hard about possibly killing the infant, but was too worried on whether the abomination's Father would know of what she had done, so Zee patiently watched.

But time seemed to be catching up to her. So many long reaching plans had to be abandoned, world events occurring so differently than her own reality, and while the need for secrecy regarding her true capabilities prevented Zinnia from maintaining her status for too long, which resulted in having to constantly reestablish ties. So many things were slipping through the cracks.

A young, charismatic politician working at the State Department – Undersecretary Alexander Pierce – he approached Pandora and attempted to recruit her for HYDRA, a fact that she found quite humorous although she allowed it to happen. Under his tutelage and mentorship, Zinnia as Pandora gained a better understanding of politics, as well as Zola's plans that he'd kept hidden from her. Eventually, he pulled young Pandora Peters away from SHIELD and into Washington, D.C. A fact that she would later hate him for, as it caused her to miss Janet Pym's death. A few years later when Hank would quit due to Mitchell Carson's mishandling of her once friend, Zee made Pierce aware of his failings. Carson would not rise within HYDRA if she had anything to say about it.

Working for Pierce held her attention for a while. She even was sent by him along with several S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents to observe a prisoner from World War Two… a man he claimed was one of HYDRA's best and brightest from the past. From Schmidt's memories, she realized that he was one of the men she had hoped to recruit soon after she had made it to Earth. As they were letting him go, she scanned his surface thoughts and found the image of Jiaying central in his mind… and the sick perversion of thought he had for her.

Reinhardt's study was of one of the Inhuman Obelisks, something that Zee already knew so much about. He was useless. While helping him out of his cell, having explained that he had been granted a medical pardon, Zinnia jolted his heart, killing him.

It became too much, and so Zinnia discarded being Pandora and decided to step back into the Daisy persona and seek out Jiaying and Afterlife. She teleported to Afterlife, but couldn't find anyone that was willing to talk to her, as those that had known Daisy previously were all gone now, and the rest were very protective of their leader. Zee was not discouraged, though, and sought out her former lover with a zeal not felt in quite some time.

Eventually, she found Jiaying in one of the villages (now an actual town) that she had enjoyed visiting from time to time. But finding Jiaying was not to be the relief she needed; no, she found past lover pregnant and in the arms of a man. Zee slipped away without letting the other immortal she was ever there.

And Zo-Kalar… who had been so silent and good for so long… that's when He swept in; at her weakest.

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She wiped at the tears that trailed down her cheeks, trying to hide the physical proof that it hurt to see her former lover happy with someone else. It had been years. Decades since they had seen one another. It was foolish to think that either of them would wait for the other. Zinnia had been with several men and women while away, but those were only distractions; maybe a means to an end related to her overall plans… but never someone to hold, to hug. To bear a child for.

*Betrayed again.*

At the soothing, unwanted voice, Zinnia glanced around the cheap hotel room she had made her way into, the mirror over the cabinet drawers allowing her not-reflection to have form. Her true visage instead of the disguise she currently wore. Upon seeing Zinnia Potter… or His taking of that form was enough that Zee dropped her Glamour and stood as herself for possibly the first time in what seemed forever.

It was almost disappointing to bear witness to.

Zee had never really considered the dangers of living so long under different likenesses, the hiding of her actual form to point that haircuts and makeups, styles of dress, were all tailored for someone else. And now, to see what consequences it had left upon her… had Nymphadora Lupin suffered from this? Had being a Metamorphmagus been even harder? Dropping her clothes to the floor, standing nude under the hotel room's harsh light, Zee took a long hard look at herself.

She still looked young; late teens or early twenties, although the sallow color of her skin – the deep purple bruising under her eyes – and the obvious failure to care for her upkeep left an unhealthy aura seem to encircle her face. Green eyes, dull, lifeless. And her hair that should have shown black as night with hints of deep red under sunlight, fell limp and dead around her face. Zee tried to smile at herself. Seamus had always liked her smile, but the grimace that showed was yellowed teeth and cracked lips. She seemed in fairly fit shape, at first, although having trained for so long with S.H.I.E.L.D. that was to be expected… but how would anyone find her attractive?

How had she missed it? All of it?

Zinnia had never been exactly vain, but no girl – no woman – wants to be faced with the reality of having potentially lost so much. Jiaying would have turned her away.

*She wouldn't dare!*

The tears that had stopped from before began again. Goddess, but she was such a girl right now, crying over an ex being happy with someone else. Ginny would have made fun of her.

*She's wasn't worthy of you.*

"Who? Ginny? Or Jiaying?"

Her not-reflection hugged itself tightly. Zee found her own arms around her torso. *Both. You are a jewel beyond measure. A promise given that will never break. And any that you offer to gift with even but a bit of who you are should be counted as blessed beyond all others.*

"But she found another."

*And she is worse for it.* Zo-Kalar argued. *You and I… we will make this world ours in a way that none other could ever dream. I am God. You are my avatar. My child given unto the Earth and the stars surrounding. You will never be alone again.*

Her appearance in the mirror pulled her attention slightly away, but He wasn't ready to let her go just yet…

*Let's fix it.* Her not-reflection spoke then, interrupting her mind from wandering away; He was saying all the right things. *We can throw away the long game. Let's start making some changes now; let the world know that you are here. That I am here. I can be the God they need… and you will be my Priestess. My High Priestess.*

"But all of the work I've done…"

*Will not go to waste.* He promised. *You will start pulling those strings, not just making sure they are still there, but using them, directing them.*

"It will be war."

*Perhaps. Maybe not. You've been the spider in the shadows, creating your web. Let's make the web bigger. Stronger. And see what we have already caught, as well as what we can ensnare in the future.*

Her gaze was drawn to the mirror, watching as her not-reflection began transforming before her eyes. Zee felt the magic rise inside the room, the overpowering aroma of ozone and lightning everywhere, but it wasn't her magic being called. Her core stayed silent. No, Zo-Kalar was feeding her vanity, her need of the moment. Her hair was full and alive; her skin – still pale – now seemed to glow with health. She couldn't help but laugh at the transformation in reality, not another Glamour, her smile worthy of a toothpaste commercial.

*Beautiful.*

"Beautiful."

Beautiful.

She never noticed that all three voices seemed to speak at once; her aloud along with her inner voice and the not-reflection's voice. And what would that have mattered anyway? For maybe one of the first times in a long time, Zinnia felt comfortable looking at herself in the mirror. Her reflection smiled back in return to her smile.

"What should we… should I do first?"

The silence of the room would have been telling if anyone else could have heard the conversation previously. A tickle at the back of her thoughts made Zee turn, to gaze about the room.

"Reveal yourselves."

And suddenly the room was filled with the dead of this world. Ghosts and spirits from the supposed Great Beyond stood all around her, waiting.

"What do you want?" Zee wondered why after all this time living within this new reality that the powers of the Resurrection Stone decided to begin working again. "Well? Answer me."

The apparition of what appeared to be a business man (he was dressed in a suit and carried a briefcase) floated forward, his eyes respectfully downcast. "We come as commanded, Priestess. We come to serve."

Commanded? Had she commanded them to finally reappear?

"And what do you offer?"

The spirit's head rose and his faded eyes gazed into her own. "What would you have of me?"

Zinnia ignored him and moved over to some of the other spirits that had apparently answered her call, hoping to find one that looked more useful. They all seemed fairly useless; average people that had led average lives, at best. Looking over them all, she considered what she needed.

"I want you to seek out others. Find me those that had magic in their living days."

A spirit of a fairly old looking lady spoke up. "That is not how it is done."

"Oh?"

The ghost nodded. "You call. We answer. We do not seek out others that are dead."

Zinnia considered the words of the dead woman. "I don't care how it was done. This is how it will now be done. Obey my commands. You will seek out those that I want and bring them to me."

"I will not." The old woman's ghost stood firm. Zinnia considered for a moment before the knowledge of what she could do came to her. Her reflection smiled. "I command you."

"No."

"If you will not serve me then you are of no use to me." She threatened.

The ghost actually smiled. "Then release me."

"I offer you as tribute to Zo-Kalar." At her words, Zinnia's reflection moved of its own volition, coming closer to the mirror's surface, almost as if it was going to climb right out of the mirror world and into this reality, but the glass' surface acted as a barrier. The ghosts within the room all became captivated by what her reflection was attempting. As she and the spirits within the hotel room watched, her reflection opened its mouth. The apparition of the old woman began screaming in unholy terror as her insubstantial form was pulled towards the mirror.

"I'll serve, Priestess." The ghost begged. "I will do as commanded."

"Good." Zinnia spoke… and for a moment, the dead woman seemed relieved. "Then I command you to accept your final fate."

"Nnnoooooooooo!" The spirit continued to howl and despair as Zinnia's reflection swallowed the spirit. The silence afterwards only added to the eeriness of the ghost's demise. She watched as her reflection licked at her crimson lips and then slowly shifted back into position, copying Zinnia's current position, appearing again as nothing more than her reflected image. Looking around the room, the rest of the gathered souls stood ready for their orders.

"Find me those that had power. Not money. I want the magic of this world." She paused. "Understand?"

In one voice, the room suddenly was filled. "As you command, Priestess."

"Then go."

And Zinnia was once again alone in the room… or, at least, as alone as the Priestess of Zo-Kalar could ever be.

The weeks and months that followed, the spirits and ghosts sought her out whenever she traveled to a new area. Each time, the restless dead offered her whatever knowledge they had found… and although the multitude of ghosts were limited to other spirits within the time of Zinnia's arrival on this Earth, they were able to find out so much.

The names of so many Inhumans were revealed, allowing for Zinnia to discover so much history of their kind that had even escaped Jiaying's ear. There were apparently temples and other hidden places all over the world that held secrets long forgotten, riches and knowledge to be rediscovered. But more than the Inhumans, there were the rumors of alien spirits trapped on this world, just waiting to be pulled from whatever hiding place such extraterrestrial ghosts or whatever they considered themselves might be hiding.

But it was the sorcerers… Earth's magic users, which offered Zinnia what she was looking for: hidden pocket dimensions created out of magic, safely kept in-between the various multiple realities that the sorcerers had apparently always known about and considered their sacred duty to protect. It was their very reason for grouping together, training and preparing. Zinnia was the very thing they were founded to protect against – a dimensional traveler that would upset the very balance of their existence.

Commanding the long dead sorcerers to reveal their secrets, Zee discovered the true purpose of the so-called sling rings. It wasn't just for teleportation around the Earth, as well as their mirrored world, but to pass back and forth between this reality and the spaces in-between… a type of bleed over… and possibly from there, into the various other realities.

Their sling rings were miniature versions of the Veil!

It was during this time that the ghosts also brought her what could possibly be the greatest news that she'd received in a very long time: the Great Old One's spawn had been removed from the Earth. And while that was amazing news, the fact that an alien ship and all of its unique technology has slipped through her grasp almost made her wish she'd kept a better watch over the little abomination.

With a renewed sense of purpose, Zinnia reestablished her cover as Pandora Peters and sought out the various branches of HYDRA to see how they were fairing, only to find they had grown in the last few years to even farther exploration than she could have imagined. Technology that rivaled much of Stark's early work seemed almost everywhere.

Project Deathlok and the Centipede Project sought to create cybernetic-enhanced abominations to act as soldiers, while others wanted to splice alien DNA with human hosts to create hybrid monstrosities that could possibly do so much more. There was even work on a new element that would break the very law of gravity, putting such power into the hands of a mere mortal. Everywhere she looked, both HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D., plus so many other organizations, were on the verge of letting technology become the very god that would destroy humanity.

Taking some time to herself to consider what her next step would need to be, possibly even going so far as to reveal herself to her enemies, Zinnia traveled to California and the home she had set up there so many, many years ago… when providence took ahold of her fate and that of soma many others. Magic like that of Hogwart's and her home reality called out to her. It was faint… almost such a weak presence that she might have missed it completely, but that it stood out in a city filled with technology.

Following the magical trail that seemed to almost sing to her, Zinnia was pulled into the urban areas of Oakland, towards a rundown apartment building. Applying a Glamour to better fit in, she traced the call of magic to an upper floor.

Using her inherent ability to turn invisible due to the Cloak's power, Zinnia snuck into the apartment and found a treasure beyond all measure. Hidden behind a holloed out wall was a Philosopher's Stone. It was different from what she remembered, glowing blue instead of the deep red as Flamel's had appeared… but she'd know its magical signature anywhere. This was a game changer. The game changer.

Pocketing the large tube containing her new acquisition within her jacket, Zinnia teleported out of the apartment as voices drew closer.

How had a Philosopher Stone come to be in Oakland of all places?

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"Well, I now possess one of the greatest discoveries of the Wizarding World. So what do I do with it now?" Zinnia spoke to her reflection.

She didn't really expect an answer, though any advice that Zo-Kalar might offer wouldn't be discounted out of hand. The fact was, she was unsure of what she should actually use the Stone for. Sure, gold was great and all, but currency on this world was easy to duplicate… no Goblin damned gold to contend with. Not to mention the various bank accounts that she had under her various aliases, all of which were accumulating interest on the stocks that she knew to invest in. So, no, gold wasn't really a necessity.

And long life? She had that upon becoming Zo-Kalar's Priestess. She'd already lived well beyond the normal lifespan of any Witch or Wizard she'd ever read about, save Flamel… but he was a special case. And besides, he had continued to age, while she was still young. Frozen in time.

There was a purpose to her finding a Stone here, she just wasn't really sure what it could be.

*It can be used to magnify you to new heights of ability.* Looking back into the mirror, Zinnia smiled to see her reflection sitting in a different position as she currently was.

"How so?"

The reflection sighed. *I can use the Stone to enhance you, much like Rogers and Schmidt were. But we will use magic. Your magic and mine. Together, the Stone can be laced throughout your body, making you so much more than you currently are.*

"Let's do it." She immeidarely agreed. Who would turn something like this down?

*Wait. Hold on.* Her reflection was motioning for Zee to sit back down. *I agree that this should be done, but we need to make sure that all of the plans we have been working on can do without us for a little while. A Ritual of this magnitude will take time to come out from.*

"How much time?"

*I can't predict. Months, maybe. Or a year. Two at most. I think.*

Zinnia blinked. Twice. "So you, as a demonic god, don't know? Maybe this isn't the best idea we've shared together."

*No. It's exactly what we should do.* the reflection stated. *Zola predicted that great changes were coming. Stories of myth and legend. Technological marvels. We have to be ready. You have to be ready for whatever might come.*

"Well, sure, but I'm a Witch with a lot of magic. And I've got you."

*And I'm telling you that you must do this – to be ready.* The Zinnia in the mirror pinned her with a look. *You are my Priestess. I say that you must perform the Ritual.*

"Fine."

Her mirror image snorted. *You could use a nap anyway.*

"And the God makes a joke, everybody."

Her reflection put her hand against the glass. Zinnia matched the movement, their hands would have bene touching if not for the mirror's surface.

*I am changed, just as you are changed. Neither are we what we were, but together something new.* Every movement made, Zinnia found herself almost bound to copy. *This is just yet another step of an evolution that not even the Outer Gods might have been able to predict. Surely, this is why those that came before were Forgotten.*

"So we're doing this." Her voice barely shook. "Where am I going to sleep for up to a year or two without my body being in danger?"

*You will join me inside the mirror.*

Said the spider to the fly. Zinnia knew that Zo-Kalar needed her. Sure, it was nowhere as deep as how she needed Him, but the thought of leaving this reality behind and entering into some mirror dimension freaked her out. Justifiably, she was sure.

She took a breath, slowly letting the oxygen out. "What do I need to get for the Ritual?" And just like that, the spell components needed for the Ritual were there inside of her mind.

*Make sure that the various strings are all cared for. It might not be a bad idea to let them know you are going deep undercover to take care of an important matter.*

"That's a good idea.*

*Of course.*

Letting her various contacts and such know that she would be incommunicado for a while took almost no time whatsoever. No, it was the gathering of specific Ritual components that took so much time. It wasn't like she could just Apparate over to Diagon Alley and visit the Apothecary there or down Knockturn Alley. Scales of a venomous snake not yet hatched? Okay. All of the teeth from a mother goat? Not too bad. Menstrual blood from a virgin female over the age of thirty years? That one took some work. Zo-Kalar was worse than Snape had ever been.

But finally the ingredients were ready. Now to preparing it all from a full moon into the new moon. Three seventeen in the morning, stirred with a branch of an ash tree never touched by metal, inside of a copper bowl. Potions were horrible. Potions for Rituals were the absolute worst. But once all done, Zinnia would pour the mixture over her head while she was sitting naked on a mirror.

She felt ridiculous, but she followed every step exactly as her reflection directed her to. That Zinnia's Potion had turned a pleasant grass green in color, the same could not be said for the one in the mirror. Zinnia had realized early on that her reflection's ingredients and Potion were obviously different… but that its color was a sickly yellow still almost gave her pause.

*Ready?*

The Potion felt slimy as it trailed though her hair and began dripping over her shoulders and down her back. The blackness of the night was cut by the light now given off from the mirror, as the stench of ozone and burnt copper seemed to seep into her skin, to never be washed away, and the air all around was filled with the moans and cries of something that was apparently dying. It was only as she felt arms reach out from the mirror and begin to drag her down into the reflected world that Zinnia realized that it had been her that had been screaming into the night.

And once returned, Zinnia would realize that she would miss more than just a year.

Maybe two.

It would be almost nineteen ninety-eight before she would walk this Earth again.


End file.
